They don’t rebuild, they reload. This is the mantra of the men’s basketball team as it enters the 2010 season without five of last season’s major contributors.

This year, the team must battle their opponents without Dustin Mitchell, Dupree Fletcher, Mike Bendall, Chris Vines and Nolan Free.

All that is left for this year’s team are two starters and two others who saw significant playing time for the Warhawks last year.

Given these monumental losses, a lesser program may crumble. But with a men’s basketball program such as UW-Whitewater’s, this position is all too familiar for the team.

A year ago, the ’Hawks entered the season having lost their top three scorers and a plethora of contributing players, but somehow they got it done.

The team managed to win the WIAC championship and finish with a 23-6 record. The only blemish for the ’Hawks was a second-round exit in the NCAA tournament, something the returnees look to rectify this season.

“We want to get further,” senior and returning starting guard Phil Negri said. “We need to take the next step as a program and team.”

Head coach Pat Miller said this year’s team has some of the same question marks as last year’s team.

“When we came into the season last year, everyone was asking where the points were going to come from,” Miller said. “I think just as we had last year, different people will pick up their productivity.”

Aiding the ’Hawks in their transition into the 2010 season is the entrance of two talented transfers who will give the team a much-needed boost.

Forward Chris Davis is a transfer from MATC-Madison and guard Antone Byrd comes to UW-Whitewater from Lee Community College in Baytown, Texas. Both will join Negri, D.J. Dantzler, and junior forward Alex Edmunds in the starting lineup.

With a year of starting under his belt, Edmunds is a player who could see dramatic improvement in 2010.

As a player well known for throwing down thundering slam-dunks, Edmunds said he has added a new set of skills to his repertoire.

“Last year, a lot of teams played off of me, so I’ve expanded my game to the outside so I can be able to attack the rim harder,” said Edmunds, who averaged 7.2 ppg. a year ago.

For the ’Hawks to have success this year, the team said the early part of the season is important. The No. 21 ranked team in the D3hoops.com preseason poll got off to a decent start, going 1-1 over the weekend at the Lee Pfund Classic in Wheaton, Ill.

Miller said the team needs to develop continuity in order to prosper.

“I think we can achieve well, but with some of the injuries we’ve had thus far, we’re definitely thin right now,” Miller said.

With all of the questions surrounding the team, one would think the team would be mired in a developmental year. However, that’s not the way Negri sees it.

“This is definitely not a transition year,” Negri said. “We want to win now.”