SELINSGROVE, PA - Anticipation is high as the Susquehanna University men's basketball team heads into the 2006-07 season, its final year of competition in the Commonwealth Conference before opening play in the new Landmark Conference in 2007-08.

The Crusaders would love nothing more than to claim its first conference regular-season title in four years and capture its first postseason crown since 1991-92, and with 11 returning letterwinners joined by a trio of dynamic newcomers, the pieces are in place for a run at the top of the league standings.

Head coach Frank Marcinek begins his 18th season as the winningest coach in program history with a 229-197 record, and plans to open the season with a lineup featuring four new starters from a squad that went 10-15 overall and 6-8 in the conference in 2005-06, missing a playoff berth by one game.

BACKCOURT

The Crusaders' revamped starting five features junior Josh Robinson (Mahwah, NJ/River Dell), who transferred to Susquehanna after playing two seasons at Division I Drake University.

Robinson, who started 24 games and averaged 6.0 points per game for the Bulldogs, is a versatile player who can play either guard position as well as small forward.

Joining Robinson in the backcourt is freshman Bryan Majors (Harrisburg, PA/Harrisburg), who started at point guard for the District 3 champions and PIAA Class AAAA semifinalists last season.

Majors is an elite defender who is also capable of scoring at the offensive end when needed, and brings big-game experience from his scholastic career to the Crusader lineup.

Several returnees will also play key roles in the backcourt this season, including sophomore Andy Gaebel (Bellefonte, PA/Bellefonte), who averaged 5.7 points and hit 24 three-pointers last season, and sophomore Chad Cohle (Hummelstown, PA/Lower Dauphin), who started 15 games at point guard as a freshman and dished out a team-high 51 assists.

Also back are sophomores Zac Smith (Harrisburg, PA/Central Dauphin), who connected on 27 three-pointers last year and averaged 4.9 points per game, and Todd DeNapoli (Dunellen, NJ/Dunellen), who overcame a midseason injury to finish with 3.9 points per game in 16 contests as a freshman.

Other contributors include junior Moose Marshall (Pottsville, PA/Nativity B.V.M.), who played in 13 games last season, along with sophomore Donta Phillips (West Yarmouth, MA/Dennis-Yarmouth) and freshman Marcus Burke (Brockton, MA/Brimmer and May) .

One significant absence in the backcourt will be senior Chad Lauer (Elysburg, PA/Southern Columbia), who had successful surgery to remove a benign brain tumor in October and is expected to miss the entire season. Lauer started 22 games last season and averaged 6.4 points and 2.5 rebounds while hitting 31 three-pointers.

FRONTCOURT

Marcinek is hopeful that his starting frontcourt of juniors Brad Okonak and Kevin Cuff and sophomore Joel Patch will create matchup problems for opposing defenses, as both Okonak and Cuff have the proven ability to shoot from outside despite playing traditional post positions.

Okonak (Lebanon, PA/Lebanon) is the Crusaders' top returning scorer after averaging 9.3 points and 3.8 rebounds while connecting on a team-high 34 three-pointers last season.

Cuff (Pottsville, PA/Nativity B.V.M.) transferred to Susquehanna from Division II Millersville University, where he averaged 6.9 points and nailed 80 three-pointers in 57 contests with the Marauders over two seasons.

Patch (Conklin, NY/Susquehanna Valley) is an athletic player who saw action in 19 games last season and averaged 3.2 points and 2.3 rebounds in just over 12 minutes per game.

Freshman center Brandon Andersen (Ronkonkoma, NY/Connetquot) is the team's tallest player at 6-7 and will give the Crusaders an inside force off the bench.

Other frontcourt returnees are sophomore Matt McDevitt (Ridley Park, PA/Ridley), who averaged 5.1 points and 2.4 rebounds per game, sophomore Sam Thomas (Endicott, NY/Seton Catholic Central), who played in 15 games as a freshman, and junior Kyle Laird (Manasquan, NJ/Manasquan), who appeared in seven games last year.