GREENVILLE, S.C. — On the forty second anniversary of his hiring at Duke, and an event that impressed him to spell his title out loud for reporters, Mike Krzyzewski made the NCAA Tournament entire once more. He nonetheless seemed a bit misplaced in that blue pullover Friday night time, somewhat than the jacket-and-tie look he proudly wore at Duke and Army for the higher a part of a half century.
But even the haters needed to admit that it was type of good to see him on the market on this final go-around, and that March Madness missed Coach Okay final yr practically as a lot because it missed arenas full of followers. In reality, with COVID canceling The Dance in 2020, Krzyzewski was returning to the event for the primary time since he misplaced that Elite Eight sport to Michigan State along with his Zion Williamson, RJ Barrett, Cam Reddish group. Yeah, that crushing defeat solely looks like it went down 15 years in the past.
“It felt great to be back here,” Krzyzewski stated with conviction.
It felt even higher, his late pal Jimmy Valvano would have confirmed, to have survived and superior.
Of course, that is Krzyzewski’s thirty sixth and ultimate journey to NCAAs, and on the very least he dodged the distress of a one-and-done sendoff. Second-seeded Duke beat Fifteenth-seeded Cal State Fullerton, 78-61, dismissing an older group that thought it may exploit the Blue Devils’ youth and inexperience.
This was profession victory No. 1,199 for Coach Okay, and who the heck is aware of if he’ll make it to 1,200? The Blue Devils have 4 first-round picks of their lineup, perhaps 5, so that they have the expertise to make a significant run at Krzyzewski’s sixth championship.
But March Madness follows no script. Though that is the one sporting occasion related to Cinderella greater than some other, fairy-tale endings are briefly provide.
John Wooden’s final sport at UCLA was his tenth victory in a nationwide title sport. Krzyzewski’s? As related as Duke appeared towards Cal State Fullerton, the entire thing may come tumbling down Sunday, and no one is aware of that higher than Coach Okay.
He was fearful that his freshmen stars could be too nervous of their NCAA debut to honor all the great, spirited work that they had performed in apply, particularly on the defensive finish. Krzyzewski was fearful about that as a result of, at age 75, he was additionally nervous about his 128th NCAA Tournament sport.
Betting on March Madness 2022?
- Read our How to Bet on March Madness information
- Get free bets and promos from the perfect March Madness betting websites
- Download the Post’s clean and full NCAA brackets
- Check out the newest March Madness winner odds
He noticed what occurred to John Calipari at Kentucky. As a lot as Krzyzewski hated that Duke misplaced to North Carolina (of all groups) in his Cameron Indoor Stadium farewell, he would have been devastated had his profession ended on a surprising loss to an enormous underdog in an enviornment that homes a main tenant often known as the Greenville Swamp Rabbits. (You can look them up.)
READ RELATED: Nowra shooting: Man dead and two others injured with stab wounds
Krzyzewski had an issue (rightfully so) with the court docket at Bon Secours Wellness Arena, which had Wendell Moore and different Blue Devils slipping and sliding in every single place. He additionally had an issue (rightfully so) with the hundreds of empty seats that greeted each groups for warmups, the results of constructing officers transferring out the day session crowd and ushering within the night time session crowd.
Where had been the standing, stomping, roaring followers for the layup traces? Where was the college band blaring its triumphant music above the pregame din? Is somebody going to point out up? Coach Okay requested himself.
“If there’s some way in the future to change that,” stated Krzyzewski, who gained’t be a part of that future.
He was nonetheless in an excellent temper after watching 5 Blue Devils rating in double figures, and after watching his protection pressure Cal State Fullerton to overlook 40 of 64 pictures, so he advised a joke about that rattling slippery ground.
“I know it wasn’t the shoes,” he stated. “Nike called me and wanted me to make sure I didn’t say it was the shoes.”
Forty-two years in the past on this date, March 18, Krzyzewski was not any sneaker firm’s cash participant. He was a 9-17 coach at West Point who someway landed an ACC job out of left area. “Duke selects Army’s loser!” screamed one newspaper headline.
Krzyzewski didn’t go house a loser Friday night time. Paolo Banchero, a former NCAA Tournament ballboy, lived out a dream with 17 factors and 10 rebounds and referred to as it a “real surreal experience.” The Blue Devils seemed brisker to everybody who had seen them staggering about in current weeks, and their enhanced communication on protection spoke to their heightened urgency to get it proper … or else.
“I just thought it was a great game for us to play,” Krzyzewski stated. “We played better tonight than we have been playing. … It’s exciting. I mean, we’ve won an NCAA game. These kids have won an NCAA game. In order to win something, you have to win NCAA games.”
Krzyzewski has gained extra of them (98) than any coach dead or alive. So sure, the NCAA Tournament wanted him again in it — one final time for the street.
