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New Jersey mid-major basketball programs are using creative team-building strategies to manage significant roster turnover.

There is a notable new addition to FDU basketball coach Jack Castleberry’s office.

“On the coffee table I have a really nice chess board,” Castleberry said. “Half our team plays chess. It’s not uncommon to have four or five players sitting on the couches in my office playing chess.”

Three of the team’s 12 newcomers hail from Eastern Europe, where chess is huge, and their influence got others hooked on the game. It’s at the point where they keep standings. Thus far freshman forward David Jevtic of Serbia is the king of the Knights, so to speak.

“Brother, he’ll put you in checkmate in four moves,” Castleberry said. “The coaching staff really g

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