Lakers' LeBron James Praises Duquesne's March Madness Upset of BYU: 'Keep It Going'

Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James was impressed with Duquesne's 71-67 upset victory over BYU in the first round of the NCAA tournament on Thursday.

The NBA's all-time leading scorer congratulated the team as well as head coach Keith Dambrot for the historic win in a post on X.

Dambrot was previously James' head coach during his days at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School, while Duquesne associate head coach Dru Joyce III was James' high school teammate as well.

James has been a vocal supporter of his former coach's team, congratulating the Dukes on X when they punched their ticket to the NCAA tournament by winning the Atlantic 10 tournament on Sunday. He also sent the team pairs of his Nike LeBron 21 shoes ahead of their matchup with BYU.

Duquesne earned its first March Madness appearance since 1977 by winning the Atlantic 10 tournament, while Thursday's win represented the school's first NCAA tournament victory since 1969. It's surely a special moment for Dambrot, who previously announced his retirement at the conclusion of the 2023-24 season.

His career isn't over just yet thanks to the heroics of his team against BYU. Senior guard Dae Dae Grant led the way with 19 points, three rebounds, and two assists while shooting 3-8 from behind the arc. Freshman forward Jakub Necas also performed admirably in his tournament debut, scoring 12 points and blocking three shots in 30 minutes off the bench.

The Dukes racked up seven total blocks as a team, holding the Cougars to a field goal percentage of just 39 percent. On the other hand, Duquesne shot 39 percent from three while taking 18 total attempts from behind the arc.

Dambrot's team is now headed to the second round, where they'll face the winner of Thursday's matchup between Morehead State and Illinois.