‘Proud’ Mike Krzyzewski focuses on Duke gamers’ feats, not self after epic profession ends with loss to North Carolina

NEW ORLEANS — After the final recreation of his 47-year profession, Mike Krzyzewski walked to the rostrum in a makeshift media room on the Superdome and spoke after Duke’s 81-77 loss to North Carolina within the Last 4 — precisely 4 weeks after the Tar Heels spoiled his final house recreation at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

However he wasn’t concerned about speaking about his legacy or profession, which got here to an finish in New Orleans in a loss to his best rival.

“To start with, congratulations to North Carolina, ” Krzyzewski stated. “Hubert and his workers and people children have completed a heck of a job and tonight was a battle. It was a recreation that the winner was going to be joyous and the loser was going to be in agony. And that is the kind of recreation we anticipated. We’d have favored to have been on the opposite facet of it, however I am happy with what our guys have completed.”

He added: “It is not about me, particularly proper now. I am simply involved about these guys. I imply, [they were] already crying on the courtroom, and I imply, that is the one factor I can take into consideration.”

In June, Krzyzewski introduced that the 2021-22 season can be his final and assistant Jon Scheyer would substitute him. With 1,202 wins, 13 ACC championships and 5 nationwide titles, he’s usually seen as the best coach in school basketball historical past together with John Wood, the legendary UCLA chief who gained 10 nationwide titles throughout a 12-year stretch.

For Krzyzewski, Saturday marked the tip of a 47-year profession that included 42 seasons at Duke.

In 1975, Krzyzewski secured his first head teaching job at Military, the place he remained for 5 seasons earlier than he was employed at Duke previous to the 1980-81 marketing campaign. After ending beneath .500 in league play in three consecutive seasons at Duke, Krzyzewski was on the new seat. However he steered this system to the nationwide title recreation in his sixth season, commencing a reign that might span throughout generations.

Krzyzewski obtained his Division I job greater than 10 years earlier than the NCAA adopted a three-point line in 1986 and he thrived throughout the one-and-done period. The Duke staff that reached the Last 4 this season was the youngest staff of Krzyzewski’s tenure.

Duke and North Carolina had by no means met within the NCAA match previous to Saturday’s assembly within the Last 4.

“That is one thing that I by no means considered and can by no means take into consideration,” Hubert Davis stated when requested about handing Krzyzewski the ultimate lack of his profession. “All I am occupied with is these gamers. Coach Okay is unbelievable and that staff is the perfect staff, to this point, we have now performed. We simply occurred to make extra performs tonight.”

Whereas he was upset within the loss, Krzyzewski stated the sport — the groups traded leads within the closing minutes — had lived as much as the hype.

“These children for each groups performed their hearts out and the group was standing many of the recreation,” he stated. “It was a heck of a recreation so it met as much as that [hype]. … I am happy with my guys. We had our possibilities within the final couple minutes, however they’re good.”

Krzyzewski repeatedly instructed reporters that there can be one other time and place for him to replicate on his profession and legacy, however he wished to deal with the gamers who had been grappling with their feelings following the loss on Saturday.

“We gave it our all, and it sucks we got here up brief, however I am happy with the trouble that we put in and the best way we went out,” Paolo Banchero stated after the sport.

Now, school basketball will transfer ahead with out Krzyzewski, who has been a beacon for the game for greater than 4 many years.

On Nov. 28, 1975, he led Military to a 56-29 win over Lehigh in his first recreation as a collegiate coach.

On Saturday, his Duke staff suffered an 81-77 loss to North Carolina within the closing recreation of his profession.

“I will be wonderful,” Krzyzewski stated. “I have been blessed to be within the enviornment. And whenever you’re within the enviornment, you are both going to come back out feeling nice or you are going to really feel agony, however you at all times will really feel nice about being within the enviornment. And I am positive that is the factor, after I look again, that I am going to miss. I will not be within the enviornment anymore. However, rattling, I used to be within the enviornment for a very long time. And these children made my final time within the enviornment a tremendous one.”

Then, Krzyzewski walked down a set of stairs right into a ready space as his spouse, Mickie, stepped by way of the black curtain with household and associates in tow.

And Coach Okay was gone.