It’s not just the Duquesne Dukes community that is ecstatic over the school’s 71-67 win over the BYU Cougars on Thursday. Even Los Angeles Lakers superstar forward LeBron James celebrated the huge triumph by the Dukes.
AYYYYYYYEEEEE!!! First tournament win in 55 years! @CoachDambrot 🐐 @DuqMBB 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾. Keep it going
— LeBron James (@KingJames) March 21, 2024
The Dukes are one of the biggest stories of the 2024 March Madness, thus far, as the Atlantic 10 Conference program is still alive in the NCAA Tournament after the No. 11 seed ruined millions of brackets with a 71-67 win in the first round of the tourney against the No. 6 Cougars.
The win over the Cougars was a historic one for the Dukes, whose previous victory in the NCAA Tournament occurred several decades ago. Before Thursday, the last time Duquesne won a national tournament game was way back in 1969 and that was a consolation round victory against the St. John’s Red Storm.
Why Is Los Angeles Lakers Star LeBron James Cheering For Duquesne?
One interesting narrative about the Dukes is the apparent support of the future Basketball Hall of Famer for them. Although James did not play college ball, he has interesting connections with the Dukes. For one, Duquesne’s head coach, Keith Dambrot, is James’ former coach at St. Vincent–St. Mary.
Also, Drambot’s assistant at Duquesne is Dru Joyce, who is very much familiar with the four-time NBA Most Valuable Player as well, as both played under Drambot at the same Akron high school.
James can continue cheering for Duquesne, as the Dukes are scheduled to square off against the No. 3 Illinois Fighting Illini this Saturday at CHI Health Center Omaha in Omaha.
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