DURHAM, NC — Mike Krzewski didn’t want it to end like this, but after Duke’s 94-81 loss to North Carolina in their last home game at Cameron Indoor Stadium, he seemed content with it.
“I can’t believe it’s over,” Krzyzewski told the audience who had come – some of whom had spent $10,000 or more to buy a ticket – to say goodbye. “So I’ll just say the regular season is over. »
It’s been a long season, and while Saturday wasn’t the official finish line, it may have been the end of his farewell run, and he was grateful for that.
Krzyzewski announced his retirement last June, a decision he said he made so he could have one last season to focus solely on training – no recruiting, no worries about the future, just a last round of the championship. But this plan will never work. The basketball world simply wouldn’t have seen Krzyzewski, the all-time winning coach, take off at sunset. His path requires a mass.
And so at every stage of the program this season, the main storyline has been Krzyzewski. At some stations there was a tribute. In other cases, emotional reunions. In North Carolina, just a month ago, there was an absence of fanfare, only rival fans threw their wrath at the sprint one last time. Then, after the fact, they played basketball games and Duke won all but four of those games.
Then came Saturday.
The Blue Demons had toured it a month ago. It was a competitive game, sure, but they actually crushed North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a victory in a season in which Duke also beat Gonzaga and Kentucky. The game was also not important in the standings. The Blue Devils, thanks to a seven-game winning streak, have already won the ACC regular season title. No, on Saturday this team was writing its own chapter on Krzyzewski’s legacy and its coach was wandering off course. Only that didn’t happen.
“I would have been lying if I said I didn’t know this date was coming,” Forward Star said. Paulo Banchero He said. ” Everybody knows it. It’s more than just a regular game. It was important. And we lost badly. »
The funny thing is that Krzyzewski doesn’t seem to care much.
“I’m glad it’s over,” Krzyzewski said. “Let’s practice and see what happens in the tournaments. It’s been a few days. »
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In his final game at Duke Stadium, Mike Krzyzewski walked out amid a warm welcome from former players he coached as well as fans.
The whole trip was surreal – part documentary, part memorial, part circus and somewhere in the basketball mix. After Saturday’s loss, before the post-match celebrations began, Krzyzewski apologized to the fans in attendance and, in unison, refused to accept it. They weren’t there to see Duke win — even in a game against the hated North Carolina. They were there for Krzyzewski, sacred results.
It’s uncharted territory in a place like Duke, for a coach like Krzyzewski. Winning is always the No. 1 job. And that’s probably how I felt a lot this season. There was a victory, but only in the context of what it means for the larger narrative. Saturday was the final curtain, the culmination of the story Krzyzewski began in June.
Banchero, like his coach, wanted to find meaning in defeat. It was a lesson. was the motive. It was catharsis.
But what it really was was the end the duke had been waiting for – for better or for worse.
Endings, of course, are followed by new beginnings, and that seems to be what matters most to Krzyzewski on Saturday. for his team too.
His retirement story will continue in ACC and NCAA tournaments, but it won’t be in the spotlight. The camera will be away from the coach, at least for a while, and will focus on the team – Krzyzewski’s team really thinks he’s good enough to win it all.
Panchereau noted that Duke’s worst moments of the season all came here at Cameron in front of home fans, who were at every game to pay their respects in the countdown to Saturday.
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Mike Krzyzewski sits down with Rece Davis to discuss his last home game at Duke.
There are no more home games, and that’s fine.
“We were hungry on the road and everywhere else, and we’re not going to play here in the NCAA,” Banchero said. “We look forward to following the path and catching up. »
However, it’s not really an opportunity to atone, as it’s a chance to turn the page and look at what lies ahead rather than Krzyzewski’s 42-year career leading up to this final round.
Banchero remains one of the most dynamic big men in the country. Wendell Moore Jr. The veteran offensive commander, beating heart of the crew, remains. Marc WilliamsAnd the AJ GriffonAnd the Jérémy RoachAnd the Trevor Keele They all seem to fit into their roles exactly as they should, as if that was the real story Krzyzewski wanted to write for this season. And now, after a year of matches that weren’t just about the final result, the team is on top.
This is the real ending that Krzyzewski wanted.
“This year I really wanted to be a good coaching job, not a retirement year, and to stay hungry,” he said. “I think I did, and I will. Until it’s done. »
