As season openers go, it doesn’t get any tougher than this.

The University of Dayton mens basketball team begins the 1999-00 season in Albuquerque, NM, as the Flyers venture into The Pit for a showdown with the Lobos as part of the two-day CoSIDA Tournament. New Mexico opened up the season a few days earlier with an 85-64 win over NAIA Simon Frasier. Unlike past years when UD clogged the early portion of the schedule with small-conference bottomfeeders to shore up a few early wins, the Flyers now find themselves venturing into one of the meccas of college basketball with the tough task of pulling off the improbable upset on America’s toughest home court. So tough the job is in fact that 72 of the last 75 teams to play at the The Pit went home with their tail between their legs. The Lobos haven’t dropped a non-conference home game since a loss to UNC-Charlotte in 1994. In short, the Flyers have their hands full.

Aside from the fact that Dayton has trouble winning road games – anywhere – this might be the perfect time to shock the college basketball realm. The Flyers looked crisp and improved in many areas over last year’s team during the two exhibition wins and New Mexico may be slightly overrated – especially if All-American Lamont Long and his sprained ankle occupies on the bench. New Head Coach Fran Fraschilla is not without talent however and has other weapons who can hurt teams as well. Junior Kevin Henry (12.8ppg) and sophomore John Robinson II (10.2ppg) started for the Lobos last season and will be counted on to provide much of the ball-handling duty this year. The combination of Henry, Robinson, and Long give the Lobos one of the quickest and most-deadly backcourts in the nation. Robinson was the first UNM true freshman to start at PG in the school’s history last season while Henry handled the duties at shooting guard. Long is an interchangeable wing player best suited to the quick forward position. Freshman Marlon Palmer will push for significant minutes at the 1 or the 2 slot all year.

The biggest hole to fill for Fraschilla is finding someone to replace All-American Kenny Thomas (17.8ppg, 10.0rpg), a man-child who was the 22nd pick in the 1999 NBA Draft (Houston). Expected to claim the power forward slot this season is senior Damion Walker, 6-7, 225lb, who averaged 9.7ppg and 4.4rpg, but don’t be surprised to see senior Roland Hannah, 6-6, 200lb, come off the bench and help out at power forward. New Mexico’s biggest weakness is at center however. Nobody on the Lobo roster is over 6-9 and no player is a true center. This job will likely be filled by committee this year as Fraschilla utilizes 6-8, 245lb Brian Smith, 6-8, 255lb Rafael Berumen, or 6-9, 235lb R. T. Guinn – the latter two players being true freshmen.

Clearly, Mark Ashman has a chance to do some damage against the Lobos, but the backcourt players like Edwin Young, Tony Stanley, and Cain Doliboa must hit the outside jumper to keep UNM from packing it in and daring the Flyers to play longball. The more shots the Flyers miss, the better New Mexico can start the fast break and do what they do best – score a lot of points.

The Flyers need to get out of the blocks early and not fall into the trap of playing catch-up. When most teams fall behind at The Pit, the downward spiral perpetuates itself until the radio announcers quit talking about the game and start talking about their personal lives. To avoid this, Purnell’s club must play north-south basketball and avoid the temptation of taking ill-advised three-pointers or clammering to beat the shot clock. Guard play will be key. Because the Lobos are guard-oriented, Dayton’s backcourt must contest every jumpshot on the defensive end and utilize solid screens on the other end of the court to hit open looks at the basket. Although a Fraschilla-coached team is noted for defense as much as anything, Lobo fans are used to seeing their team light up the scoreboard. The Flyers must get in the paint and draw fouls. This stops the clock, lets everyone catch their breath, and is a chance for easy points. It is a defining game for Dayton.

The season opener typically sets the tone for the entire season. Flyer fans are begging for good news after a lackluster recruiting period and NCAA clouds hanging overhead. If the Flyers fall short, it won’t be because they didn’t get a chance to prove themselves. If nothing else, the Flyers will have a new appreciation for what a true road game is like – and hopefully realize that road games in the small gymnasiums of the A-10 aren’t as tough as they once seemed to be.