Inside the Dukes: Mission Accomplished

OMAHA, Neb. — With just under a minute left at the CHI Health Center, Duquesne Men’s Basketball coach Keith Dambrot nodded his head, his first sign of acknowledgement that the end of his coaching career was fast approaching.

As Dambrot began to process, Andrei Savrasov went down the Dukes bench hugging each player and conversed with each.

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Duquesne’s storybook run, which saw nine consecutive wins, came to an end by an 89-63 final to Illinois in the NCAA Tournament’s Round of 32.

Despite the long odds after Duquesne allowed a 24-9 run, the Dukes fans remained vocal and on their feet.

Duquesne came into this game trailing for a total of 13:59 since the start of the Atlantic 10 Championship but were never in front during Saturday night’s tilt.

After the game, Dambrot conceded that his team could not get its feet underneath it to guard well enough, and for a team which has been predicated on the defensive end that was enough.

“It wasn’t quite the way I wanted it to end, but one thing I know in life after being here almost 66 years is you have to take the good with the bad, and you have to rally yourself back when things don’t go well,” Dambrot remarked. “What’s remarkable to me is just the fan support from Duquesne. We were laughing in the locker room, that when we first got there, we couldn’t get ten people to come to the game and look at all the people that came out for this. I know my dad will be pleased about that, wherever he is right now.”

Emotionally Dambrot still appeared to be taking the moment in but one thing he does not doubt is that the foundation is set for what he feels will be great things to happen in Duquesne basketball’s future.

One example of that came towards the end of the game when Dae Dae Grant reminded Dambrot to make sure everyone that dressed got in the game. That unselfishness was why Duquesne has become the program that it is it.

As Dambrot spoke, the rumored and expected coach in waiting, Dru Joyce III was off to the side listening to every word his boss and mentor spoke.

“I mean, this is it for me,” stated Dambrot. “Like I told these guys, I said, ‘don’t forget about me. I need somebody to go watch next year.’ So, I’m going to watch all my guys that are still playing and spend time with them and figure out what I’m going to do next. Get my wife healthy first and then go from there.  was just thankful to be around a bunch of guys that never quit. Just to see the brotherhood really grow, see these guys do anything for anybody.”

For his part Grant discussed what an accomplishment it was for himself, Dambrot and Jimmy Clark III to have gone out on the note of winning the Atlantic 10 Championship, advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1977 and then taking it one step further by winning its first tournament game since 1969.

“Just I feel blessed, you know, just to have (Dambrot) as a coach, (Grant) as a player on my team,” Clark explained. “Just going out like that with the way that we did, I can’t do nothing but feel accomplished especially with the way we started with the season coming in 0-5. I don’t feel nothing but blessed, proud of my guys and happy to be a part of it.”

NO QUIT

Kareem Rozier has been the leader of this program during both of his seasons with Duquesne and despite the disappointment of the season ending, expressed a level of pride.

Sure, Illinois shot 59.3% from the field in this game, were physical and makes became contagious, but Rozier could not help but be proud of his team.

“It didn’t start out the way we wanted it to, but we stuck together and fought,” he determined. “That’s the most beautiful thing of it, we ended it the right way. We sent our coach out with a bang; we sent our seniors out with a bang. It feels great to know I was the leader of this.”

Rozier revealed that in the locker room Dambrot told his team to hold its heads high and that this team is legendary in that it has done something special nobody has ever done.

Joyce then spoke to the team that there will be a banner raised for this team and that feeling was described as both a special and deserved one.

Rozier then took to reflect on the seniors but singled out Tre Williams.

“That’s become one of my best friends,” explained Rozier. “Man, my love for him is deep because he had one job that my dad gave him and that was to take care of a 17-year-old kid that came to college, and he did that. He’s helped me become a man so to him, I love him.”

He also cited Clark and Grant as great guards built for anything, appreciating Dusan’s fight to get back on the court and the Drame twins for their leadership and fight believing there was no going into a game without feeling that the Dukes would win.

Now the clock is ticking as there are two months before summer workouts with a new coach, so it will be soaking up all of the great memories this season provided.

Consistently during each practice and game, Rozier would shout “huddle” and the team would all group together, where he would impart words of wisdom.

For the season’s final huddle, his hope is simple.

“I want that huddle to be remembered as damn this kid was a great leader,” he decided.

THEY SAID IT

“Amazing, unbelievable. Three weeks ago I don’t think of us thought we would be here today. Nobody would believe, we stayed the course and kept working and I’m very happy to be here.” – Chabi Barre on being back on the court this season after an undetermined heart issue

“It definitely makes me want to get this feeling again and carry on what these guys are doing. It is definitely going to push me even more to do it again.” – Kailon Nicholls on what being in the NCAA Tournament as a freshman means to him

“For me it was the A-10 Championship because it was something we talked about from the start of the season and it wasn’t a surprise because it was something all of us doing but once we finally achieved it, everything we have been working towards has finally come to life.” – Nicholls on his favorite part of this season