The Pittsburgh Penguins had their hands full with the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday at PPG Paints Arena, but that didn’t stop the club from recognizing their special guests for the evening: the reigning Atlantic-10 champion Duquesne men’s basketball team.
A majority of the Dukes 2023-24 squad, which went 25-12, made the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1977 and, in upsetting Brigham Young, scored the university’s first win in the Big Dance since 1969, attended the Penguins game Thursday and were featured on the jumbo screen.
Welcome to the game, @DuqMBB.
From: The Penguins and @KingJames pic.twitter.com/nVgccJeIvu
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) April 11, 2024
The Penguins paid tribute to their accomplishments this past season during a break in play in the first period.
Also offering his congratulations and well-wishes was the Los Angeles Lakers’ LeBron James, with the Penguins playing a video featuring James, who is a minority stakeholder of Fenway Sports Group, which owns the Penguins, Boston Red Sox and Liverpool Football Club.
The four-time NBA champion and four-time NBA MVP’s ties to Duquense are extensive and well-documented.
Recently-retired Dukes coach Keith Dambrot served as James’ high school coach at St. Vincent-St. Mary in Akron, Ohio, and Dambrot’s newly named successor, Dru Joyce III, was a close childhood friend of James who also played under Dambrot in high school, in addition to collegiately at Akron.
“Big-time shoutout, big-time congratulations to my guy, coach Keith Dambrot, not only for your seven years at Duquesne, but your retirement,” James said in his address. “Unbelievable coach, unbelievable person. What you’ve laid down there at Duquesne will never be forgotten. You left it in great hands. The great hands that you left it in is one of my best friends, longtime best friend, now-coach Dru Joyce III. I salute you, my brother. I salute the Dukes. You guys keep going, keep making us all proud.”
