When looking back at Duke’s Elite Eight loss to NC State last Sunday, the easy issues to find came in the second half. When talking about the game on Sirius XM earlier this week, legendary Blue Devils Mike Krzyzewski said the problem came earlier than that.
The five-time national champion said the Blue Devils, who took a 27-21 lead into halftime, should have been up by double-digits at the halfway point.
“I felt we should have been up more,” Krzyzewski said.
Coach K pointed out that, while Duke’s 30.8% shooting percentage in the first half reflected the Wolfpack’s defensive prowess, the Blue Devils were still a perfect nine-for-nine from the free-throw line.
“The thing I worried about was (NC State guard DJ) Horne,” he added. “He’s been a hot player and he didn’t hit anything…But then in the second half, they continued to play really good defense and their offense exploded.”
Sure enough, NC State outscored the Blue Devils 55-37 over the final 20 minutes.
Coach K reacts to Duke's season coming to an end after losing to NC State in the Elite 8.
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“They outplayed us in the second half,” Coach K said simply.