Garden City, N.Y. – The Adelphi University men's basketball team is back and reloaded for the 2012-13 year and will face their first opponent on Saturday, November 10 on the road for a game against East Coast Conference foe, Bridgeport at 4 pm. They will look to match their hot start from a year ago, stay atop the upper echelon of the Northeast-10 Conference and make it back to the NCAA Tournament.
 
Head Coach
The brain behind the operation is Head Coach Dominick Savino who begins his third season at the helm of the program. Since taking over the reins from former coach James Cosgrove, he has kept the Adelphi name as one of the powerhouse programs in the East region, extended the 20-plus win streak to five seasons, and made the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year.
 
Northeast-10 Success
Since joining the NE-10 Conference in 2009-10 year, the Panthers have appeared in two of the last three championships and won it their inaugural season. Despite an early quarterfinal exit last year, the Brown and Gold shared the Regular Season Title with Franklin Pierce. Even with the successes the team has enjoyed, they have yet to be ranked higher than seventh in the NE-10 Preseason Coaches' Poll up until this year when they checked in at fourth.
 
“I think the NE-10 is the best conference in the country,” stated Savino. “There is no easy game at all. It doesn't matter whether you're in first or last, at any point in the season, any team can beat you.”
 
2011-12 Season Roundup
Last year, the Panthers were one of the hottest teams in the early stages of the season, winning eight straight after dropping their season opener. Staying atop the conference rankings, Adelphi remained one of the teams to beat throughout the entire season and despite dropping their final regular season contest, shared the regular season title with Franklin Pierce to earn the #2 seed in the NE-10 Tournament.
 
There, they were bounced in the semifinal round by third seeded Stonehill and were forced to wait and see if they would earn an NCAA Tournament berth. Courtesy of their 20 win season, the Panthers were awarded the #3 seed and won a hard fought battle against Long Island rivals, LIU Post. In the second round, Adelphi saw their season come to an end by Stonehill once again; a team that made it to the Final Four.
 
 “The biggest factor in our success was playing as a team, stated Savino. “We didn't have one person that really stood out which made it tough for defenses because they could not key in on just one person; they had to guard us all. As far as NCAA's go, we were happy to make it and ecstatic to beat [LIU] Post in the first round.”
 
Season Outlook and Goals
Savino states that his goals remain unchanged. “Make the NE-10 Playoffs, win the championship and go as far as we can go at the NCAA Tournament.”
 
The Panthers have made the NCAA Tournament 14 times in the last 18 years, and eight times in the last 12 seasons. With a strong mix of returners and newcomers, Savino has no doubt that his squad will march back to the dance once again.
 
Their success rides on their defensive prowess and has been the backbone of the program for years before Savino took over. “Defense always has been and always will be top priority,” says the third year coach. “It's been our bread and butter for years and I'm just continuing the tradition. We take great pride in stopping people and it's been our mantra. We are very proud of it.” Last year, the Panthers ranked 10^th nationally in scoring defense, holding opponents to just 60.5 ppg and 17^th in field goal percentage defense with 40.0.
 
Losing a trio to Graduation
The Brown and Gold lose their All-Met point guards in leading point scorer, Robert Johnson, and Richard Harkins who ranks sixth All-Time in assists. The guard duo combined for 583 points, 90 steals and 158 assists last year. Additionally, they see the departure of center Norron McDonald, a main presence in the paint and the hero of the first round of the NCAA Tournament that pushed the squad to the next round.
 
“Harkins, Johnson and McDonald were absolutely catamount during last year's journey,” said Savino of his graduated captains. “They held the team together, kept them calm and poised under pressure, and led the guys in each and every game.”

Captains and Leadership
Cliff Brown and Brad Simpson have been dubbed the captains of this year's squad. Fitting roles for the upperclassmen, the two have seen significant playing time and are natural leaders both on and off the court. “The team chose them,” stated Savino of his captains. “They felt that they represent this team and our school in the best possible fashion and I couldn't agree more.”
 
Returning Veterans
The Panthers return eight familiar faces this year with Travis Jordan, Cliff Brown, Chris Ranglin, RJ Samuels, John Calarco, Duane Morgan, Eddie Sullivan, Bradley Simpson and Chris Garcia all back.
 
“I think the returning class brings a lot of experience,” Savino states. “We have three guys who have been here for four years and have experience in this conference since we first entered.”
 
Experience is an intangible trait Savino believes is of the utmost importance; especially in such a tightly strung, highly competitive league. He believes “it is what gets you through the tough games and gives you the edge during crunch time.”
 
Simpson should be the go-to guy as his presence in the paint and ability to step outside and shoot well from the field is a valuable asset to the team.  He shot 59.5 percent from the field and 56.8 percent during conference play which ranked him third in the NE-10. Additionally, he returns as the leading scorer with 10.7 ppg last season. “Brad will definitely be the main go to guy. Everyone will be playing off of him,” said Savino.
 
Ranglin, Brown and Calarco all saw significant playing time last year and “have helped the newcomers mesh into the system.” The trio combined for over a third of the Panther's point total last season.
 
Morgan had a solid freshman campaign and led the team with 17 blocks. Additionally, Sullivan and Garcia are capable guards who have the ability to step on the court at any given time and immediately make an impact. Lastly, Samuels will officially lace up and put on the Brown and Gold after sitting last year due to injury.
 
Transfers and New Faces
Six new faces join the original cast this season. They include transfers Nayquann Mitchell and Sean Crawford and freshmen Anthony Libroia, Dan Pierrot, Lindon Lulgjuraj and Ryan DeNicola.
 
Crawford and Mitchell bring a combined four years of Division I experience to the team. Crawford, a graduate student, was a three year letter winner at Fairfield University while Mitchell, a senior, played for the Monarchs of Old Dominion University.
 
“We're looking for Sean to help us in transition and help control the ball and tempo of the game,” Savino said. “Nayquann is extremely athletic, brings inside presence, and has a great ability to rebound the ball.”
 
Libroia, the Bayside, N.Y. native hails from Holy Cross High School in Queens while Pierrot made his way to Adelphi from St. Anthony's High School in Huntington. Lulgjuraj comes from Bloomfield High School in New Jersey and will join his two fellow classmates at the guard position. Meanwhile, the 6-foot-7 DeNicola rounds out the rookie class as a power forward/center.
 
“Libroia and DeNicola were highly recruited athletes out of high school,” claims Savino. “They're showing why they were highly sought after and are playing really well for us right now.”

Schedule
The Panthers will have yet another trying road from start to finish. Their schedule features four opponents that made it to the NCAA Tournament last year, of which three appear in the National Association of Basketball Coaches Preseason Poll Top-25.
 
“No matter who we play, we need to finish in the top-four of conference to make it into the NCAA Tournament. With the success we've had since entering this league, we have a target on our back. It's going to be a test every night.”
 
Their journey begins the weekend of November 10 when they participate in the Bridgeport Tournament on against the Purple Knights. The following day pits Adelphi against CACC opponent Goldey-Beacom.
 
The Panthers then dive into NE-10 action on November 14 when they host the Owls of Southern Connecticut State University in their home opener. Just three days later, they hit the road again and look to avenge their 68-66 loss to the Deacons when they travel to Bloomfield. The CACC opponent is ranked #21 the preseason top-25 in the NABC poll.
 
Once the New Year hits, perhaps the most difficult test will be the stretch between January 15-29 when they take on four of the five best teams in the conference according to the Preseason Coaches Poll. On the 15^th, the squad will go up against the second ranked Riverhawks of UMass Lowell on the road before coming home to do battle with Franklin Pierce, the NABC Preseason #10 and NE-10 Preseason #1.
 
It gets more difficult from there as they host Bentley (NE-10 Preseason #5) three days later. The final game of the difficult two week stretch will be on the 29^th at Stonehill. The defending NE-10 Champs are NABC Preseason #22, NE-10 Preseason #3, made it all the way to the NCAA Final Four, and most importantly, beat the Panthers three times last year; once in the regular season, once in the NE-10 Playoffs, and once in the NCAA Tournament.
 
“Stonehill does a great job and had tremendous success last year. Our guys have not forgotten losing to them three times and I know it's a game they want to get back this year.”
 
Savino and the rest of his squad will cap the regular season the way they started; with a game against Southern Connecticut State before heading into post season play.