Dave Mackall stories, Page 2
Duquesne coach Dru Joyce III gets back to Akron roots for game vs. Northeastern
By now, you’ve probably heard the story of Dru Joyce III. A fascinating tale about his winding journey from boyhood phenom on the high school hardwood while playing alongside lifelong friend LeBron James at Akron (Ohio) St. Vincent-St. Mary to his college playing days as a slick point guard at...
Duquesne gets back on track with win over Loyola (Md.)
Following its first hiccup of the season, Duquesne found its stride again. John Hugley IV scored 20 points, Tarence Guinyard and Cam Crawford added 19 apiece and the Dukes rebounded from their first loss of the season to beat Loyola (Md.), 92-78, Wednesday night at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse. All 11...
Robert Morris men dispatch Division III Pitt-Greensburg, but coach Toole unhappy with Colonials’ effort
Robert Morris made it two one-sided victories in three days against visiting Division III opponents, thumping Pitt-Greensburg, 81-57, on Thursday night at UPMC Events Center. The win — however uninspired it seemed to RMU coach Andy Toole — comes on the heels of a 93-47 rout of Geneva on Monday...
As quality of competition ramps up, Duquesne sneaks past Queens in OT
It took overtime for Duquesne to pass its first serious test against an unlikely opponent. Queens, a fourth-year Division I program, gave the Dukes a spirited challenge Tuesday night. In the end, Duquesne won out. John Hugley IV scored 27 points and grabbed 11 rebounds and the Dukes overcame a...
Robert Morris works on chemistry in win over Division III Geneva in home opener
Andy Toole was watching. Apparently, his players sensed it, too. All Robert Morris’ veteran basketball coach wanted to see Monday night was a hint of maturity from his reconstructed team. “It’s all part of the process of becoming a good team,” Toole said following the new-look Colonials’ 93-47 dismantling of...
Duquesne pulls out win over Sacred Heart on 25-point performances from Hugley, Guinyard
Back in Pittsburgh again, John Hugley IV was having a ball Friday night at Duquesne’s UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse. “Big John” was putting on a show. “We want to excite the crowd and feed off their energy. It rolls both ways,” Duquesne coach Dru Joyce III said after the Dukes beat...
Robert Morris takes lumps in opener at Iowa
The sequel to an unbelievable men’s basketball season at Robert Morris finally got underway Tuesday night for the Colonials with a tough Midwest assignment. As expected, the new-look Colonials, a year removed from their first Horizon League championship, failed Iowa’s challenging test, falling behind quickly and losing 101-69 at Carver-Hawkeye...
Duquesne routs Niagara to open season with positive vibes
As college basketball mismatches go, this one was typical: A heavily favored team bullies its outmanned visitors and the home faithful leave giddy. But unlike a year ago, when the Duquesne Dukes opened with a new lineup and failed to live up to their reasonably high expectations, this revamped group...
Duquesne men’s basketball seeks strong start in Joyce’s 2nd year at helm
Dru Joyce III is well aware of the struggles Duquesne faced in his first season as a Division I head basketball coach after the Dukes’ miraculous run to a long-awaited return to the NCAA Tournament a year earlier. For example, that ugly 0-6 start stands out. A new team dominated...
New-look Robert Morris begins quest to defend Horizon League championship
Can he do it again? Will ultra-persistent coach Andy Toole succeed in inducing another fresh roster of basketball players to bond at Robert Morris and make a run at back-to-back Horizon League championships? “We’ll see how it all plays out,” Toole said last week while putting the finishing touches on...
Freeport tops Beaver in back-and-forth contest
John Gaillot searched for the words. In the moment Friday night, all the Freeport football coach could think of was the sweet playoff victory his team just finished off at home against Beaver. Never mind that the eighth-seeded Yellowjackets earned a date with unbeaten and top-seeded Avonworth in the WPIAL...
Duquesne picks up exhibition win over ACC foe at Virginia Tech
Even without one of the Atlantic 10’s biggest big men for much of Saturday’s exhibition men’s basketball game, Duquesne impressed. Tarence Guinyard and Jimmie Williams, a pair of first-year Dukes, scored 21 points apiece and Duquesne survived the loss of John Hugley IV to a first-half ejection to come away...
Duquesne sneaks past Virginia Tech in exhibition hoops game
Even without its biggest big man for much of Saturday’s exhibition men’s basketball game, Duquesne impressed. Tarence Guinyard and Jimmie Williams, a pair of first-year Dukes, scored 21 points apiece and the Dukes survived the loss of John Hugley IV to a first-half ejection to come away with an 83-81...
University Prep dominates Westinghouse to win 1st City League title in 7 years
Lou Berry was in demand, but what he really wanted at the time was his phone. “I need to find it,” the University Prep football coach said in a frantic moment during the midst of a chaotic celebration at Cupples Stadium on Saturday, where the Wildcats dethroned three-time City League...
Yacamelli leads Penn-Trafford as Warriors celebrate senior night with win over Latrobe
For John Ruane, all that remained was taking care of his seniors on Penn-Trafford’s senior night. Make no mistake, the Warriors’ longtime football coach adores every one of them. “It’s a big goal, obviously, to get them into the lineup. We have some great kids,” Ruane said. “And they’re absolutely...
After spurning transfer portal, David Dixon ready to chase another A-10 title at Duquesne
Transfer portal? What transfer portal? Since the advent seven years ago of the application, database and compliance tool that regulates player movement from one school to the next, seemingly everyone is on the move in the revised NCAA. Not David Dixon. Although five of the Duquesne senior forward’s teammates landed...
Shaler upends Franklin Regional in PK shootout to earn long-awaited playoff win
Bill Ament stood facing his players on the sideline and flashed a wide grin. “We’re practicing tomorrow, you know?” the Shaler girls soccer coach said firmly. With that, he offered a nod and a wink while hoping for a favorable response. Indeed, his Titans players made no effort to hide...
Penn-Trafford cruises past Armstrong to seize playoff spot
As he watched his football team stumble, fumble and bumble its way through most of the first quarter Friday night, Penn-Trafford coach John Ruane perhaps was figuring on a tougher test from visiting Armstrong. Turns out Ruane’s fretting was a bit premature. “We thought we had a slow start tonight,...
Derry lineman leaves on stretcher in high-scoring win vs. Greensburg Salem
It went quiet for a time at Greensburg’s Offutt Field on Friday night when Derry lineman Aiden Piper lay still on the turf. “From what I know, he’s stable and moving his legs,” senior Trojans lineman Dylan Pitzer said after Derry raced past Greensburg Salem, 43-28, to end a three-game...
Pitt’s Jeff Capel settling in as 1 of ACC’s elder statesmen
It seems like only yesterday that Jeff Capel sat alongside ultimate Hall of Fame coach Mike Krzyzewski as Duke’s associate head coach. Where did the time go? Already, as Capel enters his eighth season in Oakland, his tenure at Pitt is the second longest among current ACC men’s basketball coaches...
Artman throws 5 TD passes as Kiski Area earns Big East victory over Latrobe
After a boisterous celebration by players and fans, the Kiski Area football team gathered for a final word. Indeed, with the dust still settling Friday night from a 34-13 Class 5A Big East Conference victory over visiting Latrobe, first-year Cavaliers coach Colyn Haugh joined the huddle and was brief. “It’s...
Defending Horizon Tournament champion Robert Morris turns the page with new team
What will they do for an encore? Following a year in which both Robert Morris basketball programs finally captured the attention of Horizon League fanatics, the Colonials are tasked with — shall we say? — keeping the ball bouncing. “Every group is different,” Robert Morris coach Andy Toole said Wednesday...
Duquesne men’s and women’s basketball teams out to prove they are big-time
They play hoops in college basketball’s mainstream. You know them. They’re the big boys. We’re talking mainly of the ACC, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC. Certainly in Pittsburgh, it’s no secret Duquesne plays second fiddle. The Dukes routinely operate in obscurity in the lightly regarded Atlantic 10....
Duquesne basketball teams picked in middle of the pack in Atlantic 10 preseason polls
The Duquesne basketball teams will kick off their 2025-26 seasons looking to earn a measure of respect after both were swept aside Tuesday in voting for the top teams in the Atlantic 10 Conference. So, too, were their players ignored. Flanked on Tuesday by sophomore guard Mackenzie Blackford at the...
Freeport scores early, often to defeat Valley, run record to 6-0
A pair of WPIAL Class 3A football teams continued to streak in opposite directions Friday night as Freeport stayed unbeaten, and Valley remained without a victory. The Yellowjackets settled matters early, scoring all their points in the first quarter of a 42-7 victory to ensure a running clock in the...
