When Keith Dambrot was going through the process of becoming the next head coach of the Duquesne men's basketball team four years ago, there was one thing on his mind more than anything else: How much support would he and his program receive from the University.
It took three years of progress on the court and 22 months of construction on Forbes Avenue but the Dukes' head coach now has visual proof that the athletic department is all in.
That proof is the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse, a new and improved version of Duquesne's former home for indoor athletic events.
"I wouldn't have come here if I didn't think they were committed," Dambrot said on Monday morning during a Zoom call with reporters. "You don't leave your home town where all your friends and family are with a fairly well established program to come to Duquesne where the last nine coaches have been fired unless you think there is strong commitment."
Dambrot's team had an opportunity to see that commitment on Sunday afternoon, during their first practice in the new venue. While there is still work to be done in the facility in areas like the locker rooms, Dambrot says for the first time in awhile, he and his players feel like they are finally participating in the level that they've been competing at all along.
"We kinda looked like a junior college for the last two years," Dambrot said. "No disrespect to junior colleges but we didn't have high major amenities with our practices, our game situation, our laundry, so it's nice to be a high major again."
Despite work not being completely done, Dambrot's team, along with the woman's basketball team and both the men's and woman's volleyball teams will be living large in their new home.
The UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse features 3,500 seats and has a maximum capacity of 4,200. There are six suites, a club level and, once open to spectators, a bar in every corner of the building.
During a tour provided for local reporters on Monday afternoon, athletic director Dave Harper pointed out that those inside the building will always have a window view of the city as they walk around the concourse.
"The city is simply too beautiful to hide," Harper said with a smile on his face as reporters, photographers and cameramen wandered around, admiring their surroundings.
The building features far more than just a fancy gymnasium. The UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse also contains the Folino Sports Performance Center, a 10,000 square foot athletic training facility.
Duquesne athletics tells me that over $1.8 million was spent on exercise equipment alone. The Sports Performance center also features labs and a nutrition center for all student-athletes to ensure their bodies are receiving the fuel they'll need to be in top shape for game day.
As Dambrot mentioned earlier this week, his favorite part of the building is the Joe and Kathy Guyaux Player Development Center which includes two regulation practice basketball courts. Harper mentioned during the tour that multiple practice courts are a rarity for programs within the Atlantic 10 conference. Athletes will have access to the courts from 6 a.m. until midnight every day of the week.
The Dukes will open the venue on Tuesday night against conference foe Dayton at 9 p.m. in a game that could potentially reshape the team's season outlook moving forward. Harper says any match up against the Flyers is exciting but tomorrow night will be something he and many others that worked hard to make happen.
"I'll feel really good when that ball tips," Harper told me at the end of the tour. "That will be a milestone marker for us, just to play a game in here and get ready. I'll feel great for every team that gets an opportunity to play in here."
