Duquesne makes 1st NCAA tourney quote in 47 years
Mar 17, 2024, 03:59 PM ET
Duquesne colored red, white and blue banners fell from the rafters at Barclays Center with the Dukes leading by 15 in the Atlantic 10 Competition championship game, their first NCAA Competition quote in 47 years in reach.Problem was, there was still about 18 minutes left to play.Jimmy Clark
III, Dae Grant, coach Keith Dambrot and Duquesne ultimately got the complete postgame celebration– with a few less streamers– beating fifth-seeded VCU 57-51 on Sunday to make their first welcome to March Madness because 1977.
For a the sixth-seeded Dukes (24-11), who began the conference season with a five-game losing streak, the tough way is the only way they understand.
“This isn’t a situation we haven’t been in before so we knew precisely what to do,” said Clark, who scored nine points and made four totally free throws in the final 21 seconds delegated help seal the title.The Dukes led by
14 at the half, however bringing home that long-awaited NCAA bid was a struggle. Duquesne scored just 21 points and shot 5 for 29 from the field in the 2nd half, but the little Catholic school in Pittsburgh will head into the Big Dance with an eight-game winning streak.” We’ve all year won at the protective end,”Dambrot stated.”We have actually had some monstrosities on offense.” The 65-year-old Dambrot, who coached LeBron James for 2 years in high school, and the Dukes matched a program record for victories embeded in 1953-54, when Dambrot’s dad, Sid, played for Duquesne. “YESSIRRR!! Punch that (ticket)to the Huge Dance @DuqMBB!!! “James posted on X.The last time Duquesne won the A-10 and went to the NCAA Competition, future NBA All-Star Standard Nixon was leading the Dukes, who beat Villanova in the conference title game.Dambrot, left the University of Akron in 2017– where he took the Zips to the NCAA Tournament 3 times in
13 years– to take control of a Duquesne program that was close to his heart however didn’t have much history of success.” I knew it was going to be hard, particularly when we’re developing off of very little tradition,”Dambrot said.Joe Bamisile led VCU( 22-13), which
was trying to duplicate as A-10 tournament champs, with 20 points.” 2 groups contending for a champion, it
doesn’t look pretty, “Bamisile stated.” It was just an awful game on both sides.” After Clark’s free tosses with 21 2nd left to made it a five-point game, Fouysseyni Drame made 2 to put the Dukes up 55-48. A long 3 from Zeb Jackson with 9.9 left provided VCU
a glimmer of hope. The Rams fouled Jakub Necas as the Dukes struggled to incoming the ball, but he missed out on both shots.Clark made two more from the line with 1.9 left and lastly Duquesne fans could commemorate for real.Grant led the Dukes with 10 points, all in the first half, and was called the tournament’s most impressive player.The Dukes were up 15 early in the second half and the ball was in play when the game needed to be stopped because of the falling streamers. Many arrived on press row courtside-CBS play-by-play male Kevin Harlan needed to pull some off himself and partner Dan Bonner-with a couple of making it onto the floor.
The game was delayed about three minutes for clean up.A-10 officials stated the streamers and confetti utilized for the postgame celebration are red, white and blue no matter which team wins, to match the conference logo. A technical glitched cause them to fall too early, they said.Maybe the premature event lured fate, due to the fact that the Dukes went the next seven minutes without scoring. They started the second half 1 for 15 from the field.Dambrot, who admitted he is a superstitious former baseball player, stated he was unfazed by the potential jinx.”I was the most relaxed I have actually ever been,”Dambrot said. “I simply tried to enjoy it for the very first time in
my life.”It has been challenging season far from the court for Dambrot, whose spouse, Donna, has been fighting breast cancer.Keith Dambrot said the 4 competition games at Barclays were the first Donna has actually participated in all season.Duquesne finally discovered some offense to hold off the Rams, and Necas made a 3 from the wing with 4:35 left to press the cause 49-41. The Rams made one more push.Jackson made a 3-pointer for the Rams with 2:12 remaining to cut Duquesne’s lead to 49-46 and after a requiring a turnover, Bamisile made two totally free throws to cut it to one with 1:34 left. That was as a close as VCU would get.”
It’s insane to be able to come here and make history,”Clark said.The Associated Press added to this report.