The Duke Blue Devils have brought Mike Krzyzewski's farewell tour to the Elite 8 after a big win over the Texas Tech Red Raiders. By a score of 78-73, Duke advanced and earned Krzyzewski his 100th career win in March Madness.
Although Coach K will go down as one of the best coaches ever, he was the one receiving instructions late in the game. According to ESPN's Myron Medcalf, the Blue Devils players told Krzyzewski that they wanted to play man-to-man defense. He listed to them and the switch from the zone defense helped them come up with key plays that got them the victory.
“It was like a Catholic boys' choir,” Krzyzewski said about his players' collective call for the second-half tweak. “It was a chorus. They all said it. They all said it, and they said it with enthusiasm: ‘We want to do this. We want to go man.' God bless them. What a great group, these kids. They've grown up so much in the last 12 days. It's such a joy. It's an amazing thing.”
Paolo Banchero led the game in scoring with 22 points on 7-12 shooting and added four rebounds, four assists and three steals to his stat line. Every other Duke starter contributed a double-digit point total. Texas Tech's Bryson Williams scored 21 points. The thrilling win added a new signature moment for the program that has seen incredible success under Coach K.
The end of Coach K's farewell tour got off to a bitter start after losing his last game at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Now, that embarrassing loss to North Carolina is a thing of the past. The Blue Devils are still dancing.
Duke will face the Arkansas Razorbacks, who are fresh off a win against the Gonzaga Bulldogs, in the next round.
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