CBB Fans Upset as Duquesne's Cinderella Run Ends with Illinois Loss in March Madness

Duquesne's NCAA Tournament run has come to an end.

The No. 11-seeded Dukes fell to the No. 3-seeded Illinois Fighting Illini 89-63 on Saturday night in the second round, ending their Cinderella run.

Illinois was dominant from start to finish to secure a berth in the Sweet 16, heading into halftime up 50-26 thanks to strong play from Terrence Shannon Jr., Marcus Domask and Coleman Hawkins.

Shannon led the Illini with 28 points, four rebounds and four assists. Domask also notched 22 points, three rebounds and seven assists.

Duquesne, coached by Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James' high school head coach Keith Dambrot, was paced by Jimmy Clark III, who finished with 14 points, one rebound and four assists.

With Duquesne's run coming to an end and Dambrot now entering retirement, college basketball fans shared their disappoint in how the Dukes' run ended:

Duquesne beat No. 6-seeded BYU in the first round to clinch a berth against Illinois. The Dukes even securing an NCAA Tournament berth was an accomplishment, but getting past the first round was impressive.

The program will now aim to reach the tournament again in 2024-25. It has never accomplished the feat in back-to-back seasons, and it will be difficult to do so under a new head coach.

Illinois, meanwhile, will take on No. 2-seeded Iowa State in the Sweet 16.