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Duquesne head coach Keith Dambrot, who was LeBron James’ high school coach, to retire after NCAA tournament

Keith Dambrot and Duquesne will open the NCAA tournament against BYU on Thursday

Ryan Young
Staff writer
·2 min read
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Once the Dukes are knocked out of the NCAA tournament, head coach Keith Dambrot is calling it a career.

Dambrot announced on Monday, one day after he officially led Duquesne to its first NCAA tournament appearance since 1977, that he plans to retire at the end of the season. He’s spent the last seven seasons with Duquesne, and has now compiled his third 20-win season.

“I didn’t want to cheat [the job],” he said Sunday after Duquesne beat VCU 57-51 in the Atlantic 10 tournament championship game. “And I just felt like I could see myself losing the edge at some point. That’s why I said, ‘I don’t want to end like that.’ I’m not built that way.”

Dambrot got his head coaching start at Central Michigan in 1991. He spent two seasons there, but then jumped to the high school level and actually coached Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School in Akron, Ohio.

Dambrot returned to college in 2004, and he spent the next 13 seasons at Akron. He compiled a 305-139 record and won six regular season MAC titles and made three NCAA tournament appearances with the Zips.

In total, the 65-year-old holds a 440-268 record as a Division-I head coach.

"My personality type is not good to coach into the 70s," Dambrot said, via ESPN. "I'm too involved in it. I'm still worried about where the guys are on time for the bus, you know? It's just, it's hard to explain, right? Maybe. Maybe a little neurotic."

Dambrot and Duquesne went 24-11 this season and won eight straight games to close out the year. The Dukes earned a No. 11 seed in the NCAA tournament after their A-10 tournament title, and will take on BYU in their first-round game on Thursday afternoon in Omaha. The winner will then take on either Illinois or Morehead St. in the second round of the East region on Saturday.