For a coach accustomed to Division I, moving to Division II can be a reality check. But there are unexpected pleasures, as new Shaw coach Robert Brickey is finding out. Brickey, the former Duke player who was hired by Shaw in early August to take over its faltering program, has found a warm welcome and a larger role than his title would imply.

"One of the things I love about being at Shaw is the interaction with the students," Brickey said while sitting in the office he shares with assistant coach James Hill. "They want to know what's going on. A lot of it has to do with Coach Hill because he knows so many, and I've [gotten] to meet a lot of students because of him.

"And it's not necessarily basketball. They want to talk to an adult sometimes. There's a tremendous amount of kids that want to come hang out in your office, come say hello, talk about life and school. I'm having as much or more fun than they are."

Brickey, 37, said he has never encountered such closeness between students and faculty in his previous coaching stops -- Army, Southern Methodist and James Madison. But for a coach who thinks of himself as a teacher, it's an appealing bonus.

The Bears, coming off a tumultuous 8-20 season that led to coach Michael Bernard resigning over the summer, open their season Friday with a 6 p.m. game against Armstrong-Atlantic at the Johnson C. Smith Classic in Charlotte.

This is Brickey's first head coaching job and it brings him close to home. He grew up in Fayetteville and played for the Blue Devils in 1986-90.

Brickey, who played forward, ranks No. 33 on Duke's list of all-time scorers with 1,299 points and served as a captain his senior year. The Devils advanced to three Final Fours during his career.

It was his Duke connection that helped him earn the opportunity at Shaw. School president Clarence Newsome is also a Duke graduate and athlete -- he played football as an undergraduate -- and followed Brickey's playing career.

"I took special interest in Coach Brickey because he was a hustler," Newsome said. "He was a determined player. You had a sense that he was giving up more than 100 percent. The way he jumped, the way he played defense, the way he followed through on assignments, just impressed me watching him on television."

Although an older generation might remember him from his Duke days, Brickey doubts many current Shaw students do. He's not sure it even matters. It's really all about the Bears.

"What we're trying to do here at Shaw is build a quality program, not only being successful on the court, by bringing in young men who graduate and do the right thing while they're here," Brickey said.

James Rosebud, who led the team with 13.7 points a game last year, said while the players are impressed by their coach's credentials, they don't ask him about it.

But one thing they should understand about Brickey's Duke heritage and playing for Mike Krzyzewski is discipline, an area of concern for the coach. Brickey has noticed a tendency to get "lackadaisical" with passes as the offensive tempo increases.

So the plan is to put on the brakes and get the players to focus on execution of the offense.

"That's been the most difficult thing, getting them to slow down," Brickey said. "I remember when I was in school, they said, 'Slow down.' And I was like, 'that doesn't make any sense; I'm trying to beat this guy. It's a game of speed.' But now I realize that it's a game of thought."

The system, Rosebud said, allows them to show their individual talents.

"He's not one of those guys who are yelling and cussing at you all the time," Rosebud said. "He's not on you for every small thing you do wrong."

But when they mess up, Brickey metes out the traditional punishment -- he makes them run.

Brickey's team will be on the road through November and December. The Bears' Spaulding Gym debut won't come until Jan. 12 against N.C. Central.

Brickey could come to love cramped Spaulding Gym. The atmosphere there can be extremely intimidating for visiting teams, not unlike Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Shaw is hoping Brickey can build a men's program that wins as often and as impressively as the women's team has in recent years.

Right now, Brickey is upbeat.

"We're going to be pretty good," he said. "I think we're going to be able to compete with just about everybody in the conference. If we do things, the little things -- paying attention to detail, executing and have discipline -- then we might surprise some people."