Tag: Mike Krzyzewski

What a storybook ending for Duke and all of the Duke haters

This is too perfect.

This is the online version of our daily newsletter, The Morning Win. Subscribe to get irreverent and incisive sports stories, delivered to your mailbox every morning.

Imagine if you were sitting in a writers room in Hollywood and your mission was to come up with an idea for how Mike Krzyzewski’s final season as head coach of the Duke Blue Devils would go.

Sure, that would be a weird project to work on, but let’s just go with it. It’s a Monday morning, some weird stuff happened last night at the Oscars and I just want to get a bit goofy here.

OK, so you’re in that room and you raise your hand and you say this – how about Coach K loses his final home game of his career to his bitter rival North Carolina… but then gets to face those same Tar Heels in the Final Four with a trip to the championship game on the line?

Chances are you’d be laughed out of the room because something like that happening seems way to forced and nobody would buy it and everyone would be mad at you for being so dumb for even bringing it up. Duke and UNC have never even faced each other in the NCAA tournament and now you think they should do that in the Final Four? You’re nuts!

But guess what…. it’s really happening! Duke and North Carolina will face off next Saturday night in New Orleans and it’s just the most perfect situation for the Blue Devils and it’s also a perfect situation for all the people who hate the Blue Devils.

Duke fans would like nothing more than to see their beloved coach get some revenge over North Carolina for what the Tar Heels did earlier this month in Coach K’s final home game at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Duke fans love any win over UNC but a win over UNC in the Final Four would make them feel really happy for a very long time.

Duke haters, meanwhile, would love nothing more than to see Coach K suffer another crushing defeat against his biggest rival, a defeat that would be the final moment of his career and something that would stick with him for the rest of time. I mean, Twitter will be a crazy place if UNC is able to beat Duke.

Coach K’s team advanced to the Final Four with a win over Arkansas on Saturday night. Following the victory he appeared to blush when one of his players called him the GOAT during a postgame interview. It was a sweet moment that capped off a memorable night for Coach K and his guys.

Now they get to move on to arguably the biggest game of Krzyzewski’s career (I know he’s been in and won a bunch of national title games but the stakes for this one are even bigger than that since this could be his last game) and it just so happens to be against UNC.

You couldn’t come up with a more perfect ending if you tried.

Though Duke fans hope the real ending will be pushed to next Monday night.

Quick hits: Will Smith slaps Chris Rock at the Oscars… Scottie Scheffler’s sweet moment with his dad after win… Pitbull’s great response to a photo with Antonio Brown… And more. 

Associated Press

– The Oscars are generally an unwatchable awards show but that wasn’t the case last night when Will Smith slapped Chris Rock on live TV over a joke.

– Scottie Scheffler’s dad said the sweetest thing to him after his victory at the WGC Match Play Championship.

– Pitbull had a great response after someone who kind of looked like him got a photo with Antonio Brown, who thought he was taking a photo with Pitbull.

– Peyton Manning had jokes about the retirement gifts he gave Tom Brady… and how he wants them back.

– You need to sign up for our new daily NBA newsletter Layup Lines. It gets you ready every afternoon for the big games coming up at night and more. Signing up for it is quick and easy to do right here. You’re going to want this in your basketball lives.

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Duke’s Paolo Banchero made Mike Krzyzewski blush during his postgame interview and hoops fans loved it

What a sweet moment.

I’m not sure if you’ve heard about this or not but this is going to be Mike Krzyzewski’s final season as head coach of the Duke Blue Devils. Shocking news, right?

Well, his final fun became even more special Saturday night when Duke beat Arkansas 78-69 to win the West bracket and advance to the Final Four next weekend in New Orleans.

Coach K has now gone to the Final Four in five different decades, which is just insane, and this will be the 13th time he’s made it to the Final Four.

Right after the game he was being interviewed by Tracy Wolfson when two of his best players – Paolo Banchero and Wendell Moore – jumped in and shared a special moment with their coach.

Banchero called Coach K the GOAT and Krzyzewski’s reaction was pretty great:

What a sweet moment.

Twitter had reactions.

Duke players go wild after clinching a Final Four berth in Coach K’s last season

A Final Four in his last season. Goosebumps all around.

Whoever said a Hollywood ending was impossible in real life has clearly never watched sports.

On Saturday night, Duke (-4.5) dismantled Arkansas, 78-69, to move on to the Final Four. It was never all that close. The Blue Devils shot over 54 percent of the field, got into the lane with quality shots at will, and utterly humbled an overmatched Arkansas squad.

As such, Mike Krzyzewski’s magic carpet ride of a final season with Duke continues — in the Final Four, dear readers. I’m getting goosebumps just reading this back to myself for emphasis. Are we sure someone isn’t writing a script?

In the post-game celebration, Duke players were elated for not only their accomplishment but their legendary steward.

Or in the words of Paolo Banchero, the “GOAT”?

You know someone’s a coach at heart when they’re downplaying their success during a celebration.

So, I’ll outline that success for him. Krzyzewski’s excellence with Duke is unprecedented. With this last-season Final Four berth, he’s managed to do what once seemed unimaginable:

He’s surpassed the great John Wooden.

Who knows what happens next for Duke and Krzyzewski this March. The ride isn’t over. It might even have a stop in April.

For now, Krzyzewski and his players can bask in the glow of another incredible run. They’ve certainly earned that right.

Gannett may earn revenue from Tipico for audience referrals to betting services. Tipico has no influence over nor are any such revenues in any way dependent on or linked to the newsrooms or news coverage. See Tipico.com for Terms and Conditions. 21+ only. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO).

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It’s perfectly OK to admit you’re secretly rooting for Duke to win in Coach K’s final season

It’s OK to admit it!

This is the online version of our daily newsletter, The Morning Win. Subscribe to get irreverent and incisive sports stories, delivered to your mailbox every morning. Charles Curtis is filling in for Andy Nesbitt.

You’re probably getting ready to throw tomatoes at your screen, but hear me out.

There’s a part of you that actually wants Duke to win as legendary head coach Mike Krzyzewski stands on the Blue Devils’ sidelines for one last run.

Yes, yes, Duke is the evil empire, the front-runner you’ve been trained not to root for unless it’s your alma mater.

Except … how cool would it be to see him take a team that was seemingly overrated heading into the tournament and ride off into the sunset with one more national championship? You love Hollywood endings! Wouldn’t this be one?

(An aside: There are exceptions. I don’t expect North Carolina fans to feel this way.)

Fine, I’ll admit that there’s a percentage of me that wants this to happen, despite Duke ruining a perfectly good Texas Tech pick in a bracket pool where I was leading, thank you very much. Ultimately, I’ll be a St. Peter’s fan tonight and maybe cheering for Purdue and Jaden Ivey would be fun if the Boilermakers emerge victorious from that Sweet 16 game.

But in the back of my mind, I want to see an emotional Coach K lifted by Paolo Banchero and Co., winning one more for an all-time legend in any sport.

OK, I’m ready. Toss those tomatoes. Just know that I’m speaking to some part of you that kind of wants Duke to win but doesn’t want to say it out loud.

Quick hits: Our latest NBA mock draft … Who wants to play with Aaron Rodgers … and more.

Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

— Here’s Bryan Kalbrosky’s latest NBA mock draft and a certain Gonzaga center is No. 1 overall even though he’s now out of the tourney.

— Who wants to play with Aaron Rodgers? Seems like … no one?

— Providence coach Ed Cooley did the Michael Jordan quarters game in Chicago.

— Layup Lines, our new daily NBA afternoon newsletter is LIVE! Subscribe to it here!

Duke tore apart Texas Tech’s top defense when it mattered most

Texas Tech could not stop Duke from making it rain.

It looked like Texas Tech had Duke’s number on Thursday night in the Men’s NCAA tournament.

For the most part, the Red Raiders held Duke’s prolific offense in check during the first half. Thanks to a defense that ranked in the top-10 in the country in almost every relevant category, Texas Tech (who came into the game as 1-point underdogs) put Duke in a vise grip and refused to let go. A 33-29 first-half lead was nowhere near indicative of the Blue Devils’ offensive struggles. Surely no one in Durham imagined Mike Krzyzewski’s formal farewell tour ending at the hands of a defensive masterclass.

Folks, that’s why you play two halves in college basketball.

With their season on the line, Duke punched back at Texas Tech and found an answer to the gritty, disciplined, athletic Red Raider defense … to the tune of a lights-out, 17-of-24, shooting performance second half.

I shouldn’t have to tell anyone this secret, but 70.8 percent shooting in the clutch against a defense that locks almost everyone down while throwing away the key is ridiculously good. We know Paolo Banchero and Wendell Moore will get theirs for Duke. Thursday night was the sort of offensive performance where even Jeremy Roach found a way to make his mark by putting the ball in the basket. A 78-73 win was well-earned with good defense beaten by a better offense.

Texas Tech brought its A-game to the Sweet 16. In another year, against another team, they might have been on the verge of the Final Four. But not this version of Duke. This version of Duke was firing on all cylinders and looked unstoppable with their backs against the wall. As Texas Tech learned, sometimes it’s just not your year.

As for the Blue Devils, they suddenly look national title worthy. They can thank the Red Raiders for awakening the sleeping offensive giant inside.

Gannett may earn revenue from Tipico for audience referrals to betting services. Tipico has no influence over nor are any such revenues in any way dependent on or linked to the newsrooms or news coverage. See Tipico.com for Terms and Conditions. 21+ only. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO).

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Jeremy Roach saved Duke, Coach K, in thriller win over Texas Tech

Duke has an unexpected ace in their sleeve.

On Thursday night, it certainly looked like Mike Krzyzewski’s swan song with Duke was coming to an end. Behind its physical, grimy defense, Texas Tech had knocked the Blue Devils (favored by a point heading into the contest) down to the mat over and over. More importantly, they showed no signs of letting up.

This was it. A 42-year legendary run in men’s college basketball, over, in the Sweet 16. Not the way anyone had envisioned Coach K leaving the game. Oh well. Happy endings are rare, and you shouldn’t expect them.

But Duke wasn’t finished. Far from it. Krzyzewski had hope of his final run continuing. All thanks to sophomore guard Jeremy Roach.

As Duke responded in this back-and-forth battle, Roach was instrumental. Beginning at the 10:07 mark of the second half, it seemed like he was in on every play. A layup. A free throw here and there. A steal. A layup. A jumper in the face of a tenacious Red Raider defender. Another jumper.

When the Blue Devils finally started to take control in the closing moments, Roach potted what felt like a dagger in an eventual 78-73 Duke win.

Onions, ice in your veins, and every hallmark of a clutch play. A classic “Duke” moment in March, in one of Coach K’s last March moments with Duke, delivered by a guard like Roach, who was ready for the March stage.

All in all, Roach chipped in 15 points (13 in the second half), five assists, and four boards. It’s the guard’s third straight tournament game in double-figures scoring. Considering Duke was on the ropes, that’s not bad for a guy who averaged just over eight total points a game during the regular season.

In the coach’s last ride, Duke is on to the Elite Eight against Arkansas. Even better, they have their X-Factor.

His name is Jeremy Roach. Remember it.

Gannett may earn revenue from Tipico for audience referrals to betting services. Tipico has no influence over nor are any such revenues in any way dependent on or linked to the newsrooms or news coverage. See Tipico.com for Terms and Conditions. 21+ only. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO).

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Mike Krzyzewski got emotional when talking about Duke’s ‘grit’ after win over Texas Tech

You could practically feel the pride coming out of the legendary coach.

Over the years, Mike Krzyzewski has seen a lot of basketball. A lot of good, some bad, but mostly good. After almost 42 years of coaching in the same place, you’d think that nothing could bring him to tears anymore. He’s seen everything you could imagine. He’s been there and done that. There’s only so much that can happen with overtly orange basketballs on a small rectangular court.

But then his final-ever team at Duke survives an absolute battle with Texas Tech in the Sweet 16 of the Men’s NCAA tournament. A 78-73 win that felt a lot closer than the margin might indicate. Show tremendous toughness in that sort of victory, and you’ll even move the legendary coach.

CBS’s Tracy Wolfson asked Krzyzewski about the Duke team’s “grit” in beating the Red Raiders. He couldn’t help but gush and choke up.

What a fantastic moment all around.

You’ve managed to do something special when you’re getting Coach K to swallow his words in a victory bask mid-sentence. Not to be overlooked, if you’re likely NBA lottery pick Paolo Banchero, you know you’re an incredible talent if Krzyzewski is glowing about you — unprompted — in the same interview.

Duke is on to the Elite Eight against Arkansas. Something tells me that by the end of this month, we’ll see Krzyzewski, at minimum, fighting back the tears again. That’s what coaching should be all about: Being proud of your players.

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We all need Duke in the NCAA tournament now more than ever

Duke just makes this whole thing better.

The first four days of the 2022 men’s NCAA tournament are in the books and we still have three No. 1 seeds advancing, we have a fun Cinderella team in Saint Peter’s to root for, and we have some other big-name programs like North Carolina, Michigan and UCLA in the Sweet 16.

But most importantly we still have the villain of the tournament moving on to fight another day.

I’m talking, of course, about Duke.

The Blue Devils survived quite a scare yesterday when they rallied late to beat Michigan State, 85-76. After leading for most of the game, Duke found itself down by five points with just over five minutes remaining. Mike Krzyzewski’s legendary career was so close to coming to an end and everyone on the internet was ready to dance on his coaching grave.

Coach K’s young team responded, however, and refused to let their coach entire retirement just yet.

In doing so, they helped all of us by making sure the team so many people love to hate is still around making things interesting heading into the second weekend of the tournament.

If you didn’t go to Duke chances are you hate Duke. You love to see Duke lose and love to boo them any chance you get. There isn’t another team in the tournament like that. It’s fun to dislike Duke.

If you’re a casual fan then you don’t really care how Arizona, Kansas, or Gonzaga – the three No. 1 seeds left – fare in a game. They just kind of blend into the whole picture and don’t make you feel any sort of way about them.

But if you’re a casual fan, or even a hardcore college hoops fan, chances are you perk up when you see Duke is in a close game and you get into the final few minutes more than you would for any other team.

That’s what makes sports fun! Villains are important. It’s like rooting against the Patriots if you don’t have a team in the fight. We all need a team that is universally disliked to bring us together and bring some more intensity out of a game that we normally wouldn’t care all that much about.

Is Coach K’s final season storyline getting annoying. Of course it is! But that adds even more to the whole villain situation. You know how crazy the internet is going to get when he loses and his career comes to an end? It’s gonna be bananas.

The more Duke wins the better the NCAA tournament will be. Hopefully the Blue Devils keep going because an Elite 8 matchup with Gonzaga would be absolutely tremendous.

Embrace the power of the villain, folks!

Quick hits: Charles Barkley’s bad bracket… Bob Huggins creeps everyone out… Drew Timme’s hilarious postgame interview… And more. 

– Charles Barkley broke down his bad bracket over the weekend in an absolutely hilarious segment.

– Bob Huggins creeped everyone out with some bedroom talk.

– Gonzaga’s Drew Timme hilariously stopped himself from dropping a F-bomb on live TV and fans were in awe.

– College hoops fans rightfully loved this special moment between Juwan Howard and Tennessee’s Kennedy Chandler after Michigan’s win Saturday night.

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Don’t tell us the odds. Tom Izzo, Michigan State, are a great bet against Mike Krzyzewski, Duke

Izzo over Coach K in March is safe.

I’m not going to beat around the bush.

I see no statistical basis or player advantage that says No. 7 Michigan State (+6.5 underdogs with Tipico Sportsbook) should upset Duke on Sunday afternoon.

In his last ride with the Durham faithful, Mike Krzyzewski’s Blue Devils are one of the favorites to win the Men’s NCAA tournament. And aside from talents like Paolo Banchero and Wendell Moore–who any squad would be lucky to have–I can give you a laundry list of reasons corroborating that rationale. Duke is the eighth-best scoring team in the country (80.1 points per game). They rebound well (30th in the nation), pass like a well-oiled machine (9th overall in assists), and rarely if ever, give away points by fouling (third-lowest opponent free throw attempts in the country).

Michigan State, by direct contrast, uh, shoots three’s kind of well? (27th overall in three-point percentage.) They have … Gabe Brown? Yeah, I’m not super enthusiastic about this matchup on paper.

But this is Tom Izzo, in March, against Mike Krzyzewski. All bets are off.

Or should I say, on?

I will never count out a Spartan team against anyone, as long as that man roams courtside for Michigan State. And to be candid, if anyone’s going to knock off Duke before they go on a deep tournament run that frustrates everyone outside of Durham County, it’s a Michigan State team led by Izzo that has seemingly no business beating title contenders.

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It’s not as if this version of Duke is invincible and immune to letdowns. If the Blue Devils can lose to North Carolina in Mike Krzyzewski’s final-ever game at Cameron Indoor Stadium, if they “make” their legendary coach apologize for their poor effort, then they can certainly lose to Michigan State when the stakes are win or go home.

Steel your nerves and have some courage. Roll with Izzo and Sparty over Coach K one last time.

Gannett may earn revenue from Tipico for audience referrals to betting services. Tipico has no influence over nor are any such revenues in any way dependent on or linked to the newsrooms or news coverage. See Tipico.com for Terms and Conditions. 21+ only. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO).

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There’s nothing like cheering against Duke in the men’s NCAA tournament

Everyone loves rooting against Duke. But this year is special.

This is the online version of our daily newsletter, The Morning Win. Subscribe to get irreverent and incisive sports stories, delivered to your mailbox every morning.

Welcome to two of the greatest days in sports – the opening round of the men’s NCAA basketball tournament.

There’s really nothing like these two days – games from basically noon ET until you fall asleep on the couch and wake up to see there’s still a game out west being played on a random channel that you only watch a few times a year.

There’s upsets and buzzer-beaters and gambling, oh my!

But there’s something else that happens that seems to bring just about everyone together – cheering against Duke.

If you’ve ever logged on to Twitter then you’ve probably noticed that everybody disagrees about everything and are pretty passionate about all the topics, no matter how little they might know about any of the subjects.

But that all changes once Duke gets in a close tournament game. Everyone starts becoming friends and rooting for the common good – for Duke to lose and to look sad while walking off the court after being upset and sent packing for the year.

It’s wild, really. Strangers on social media agreeing on things and being supportive of each other and then celebrating together once it’s over before going back to attacking each other over mostly stupid things.

This year will be even more intense/special as it’s Mike Krzyzewski’s final run as head coach of the Blue Devils. While Duke fans and alums are hoping for one last championship run for their legendary coach, all the other college fans want to see Coach K lose as early as possible, because that will only make things even sweeter than just your normal Duke tournament loss.

What’s with all the hate towards Duke? Well, Coach K has been really successful over the years, winning five national titles and seemingly always being in contention. You know how it is in sports – the more success you have the more hate is going to come your way. It’s just the way it is. Jealousy is a hell of a drug. Also, their fans can be annoying, which makes other fans so happy when they get to see sad Duke fans after losses.

Duke is a No. 2 seed in the West this year and don’t play until it faces Cal State Fullerton  tomorrow at 7:10 p.m. ET. The Blue Devils should win that game but if they don’t then the internet will likely break. If they do win the game then there’s a good chance they’ll face Michigan State in the second round, which would be a juicy matchup between two legendary coaches – Coach K and Tom Izzo – who have battled against each other in the tournament before.

Gonzaga is the No. 1 seed in the West and if Duke has to play the Zags then suddenly everyone is going to love the Zags. That’s just how it goes.

Enjoy these next two days and enjoy the rest of the tournament and enjoy rooting against Duke, because things are likely going to feel different for everyone next year when Coach K isn’t on the sidelines anymore. Ok, maybe not that different but probably a little different.

And start learning about the guys on that Fullerton team. They could be heroes Friday night. At least for one day.

Quick hits: 15 must-watch NBA prospects in NCAA tournament… Ranking all 68 teams by their mascots… College players who have seemingly been around forever… And more. 

(AP Photo/Young Kwak)

– Mike Sykes breaks down the 15 must-watch NBA prospects playing in the NCAA tournament, leading with Gonzaga’s Chet Holmgren.

– My friend Charles Curtis ranked all 68 tournament teams by their mascots and the No. 1 mascot on this list is pretty amazing.

– Robert Zeglinski looks at 12 March Madness stars who feel like they have been playing college basketball for so long.

– Need some betting advice for the tournament? My friends at BetFTW have you covered with everything you’ll need to know to have some success.

– Need help with today’s Wordle? Charles Curtis has got you covered.

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