LeBron James was dialed into Duquesne during its run at the A-10 Tournament. He has deep-rooted ties to the college basketball program in Pittsburgh even though he is from Ohio.
The Dukes have his support!
James was selected first overall in the 2003 NBA Draft as perhaps the most hyped prospect of all-time. To say that he has lived up to the expectations would be an understatement.
However, prior to being drafted, James played in a lot of big games at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School in Akron. Keith Dambrot was the coach for his first two seasons, during which the Fighting Irish won two state titles, and he played alongside Dru Joyce III.
Keith Dambrot is now the head coach at Duquesne. Dru Joyce is the Dukes’ associate head coach.
Their team played its way into a No. 6 seed in the Atlantic 10 this year. The rest is history. Literally!
Duquesne rattled off four-straight wins to win the conference tournament and clinch an automatic qualifier bid for March Madness.
- 83-73 vs. 14-seed Saint Louis in the Second Round
- 65-57 vs. 3-seed Dayton in the Quarterfinals
- 70-60 vs. 7-seed Saint Bonaventure in the Semifinals
- 57-51 vs. 5-seed VCU in the Championship
LeBron James made sure that he didn’t miss any of the Dukes’ games. The Lakers had it on in the locker room prior to a 2:30 meeting on Saturday!
Duquesne’s win on Sunday was monumental for the program. It had not won the A-10 Tournament since joining the league in 1982. The Dukes reached the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 47 years (!!) with the victory. They last went dancing in 1977.
James was fired up for his old coach and close friend.
Ohio State did not make March Madness this year so Duquesne has the full support of the four-time NBA champion. It will try to win a game in the Big Dance for the first time since 1969!