The Duke Blue Devils have had some tough losses, but at the same time some convincing victories throughout the season. Through it all, Coach K continues to find a way to put his name in the conversation as one of the greatest coaches of all time. Duke was led by Jahlil Okafor and Tyus Jones on Monday night to defeat the Wisconsin Badgers 68-63 in the National Title game in Indianapolis.
The Blue Devils outscored the Badgers by 14 over the final 13 minutes after falling behind by 9 in the second half. Okafor was outplayed by Wisconsin's Frank Kaminsky all game long, but came through in the clutch by hitting 2 straight buckets to help give Duke the lead with 1:22 left. Okafor is expected to be the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft if he decides to leave.
The Blue Devils have now won all 3 National Title games that they've played in Indianapolis, including over Butler in 2010 and in 1991 over Kansas. Head coach Mike Krzyzewski is now 4-0 in Final Fours played at Lucas Oil Stadium. He has led Duke to all of its 5 national titles, putting him alone in second place behind only UCLA's John Wooden.
Tyus Jones was given the Most Outstanding Player award for the Final Four after scoring 23 points Monday night, including 19 in the second half. This after scoring 22 points in Duke's win over Wisconsin in December.
Grayson Allen was the most surprising player late in the tournament, including in Monday's game. Allen came off the bench with Okafor in foul trouble and scored 8 straight points with Duke trailing by 9. He combined for 18 points in the first 5 tournament games, but finished with 16 points against Wisconsin, which is 12 more than his season average.
Wisconsin's National Player of the Year Kaminsky finished with a double-double of 21 points and 12 rebounds, while holding his counterpart Okafor to 10 points and 3 rebounds. Sam Dekker struggled on the night for the Badgers, including two rare air balls on 3-point attempts early on. He finished the night with just 12 points on 6-of-15 shooting from the floor.
Krzyzewski has led many different types of teams to the promise land, including this year's team led by mostly freshman, some of which may be one-and-done. 60 of the Blue Devils' 68 points were scored by freshman on Monday, the most in National Title game history.
Whether it's a team full of NBA stars, mostly seniors, or young freshman, Coach K has dealt with them all and won with them all. Monday night was proof that Krzyzewski belongs in the conversation as one of the greatest coaches in college basketball history.
The Blue Devils outscored the Badgers by 14 over the final 13 minutes after falling behind by 9 in the second half. Okafor was outplayed by Wisconsin's Frank Kaminsky all game long, but came through in the clutch by hitting 2 straight buckets to help give Duke the lead with 1:22 left. Okafor is expected to be the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft if he decides to leave.
The Blue Devils have now won all 3 National Title games that they've played in Indianapolis, including over Butler in 2010 and in 1991 over Kansas. Head coach Mike Krzyzewski is now 4-0 in Final Fours played at Lucas Oil Stadium. He has led Duke to all of its 5 national titles, putting him alone in second place behind only UCLA's John Wooden.
Tyus Jones was given the Most Outstanding Player award for the Final Four after scoring 23 points Monday night, including 19 in the second half. This after scoring 22 points in Duke's win over Wisconsin in December.
Grayson Allen was the most surprising player late in the tournament, including in Monday's game. Allen came off the bench with Okafor in foul trouble and scored 8 straight points with Duke trailing by 9. He combined for 18 points in the first 5 tournament games, but finished with 16 points against Wisconsin, which is 12 more than his season average.
Wisconsin's National Player of the Year Kaminsky finished with a double-double of 21 points and 12 rebounds, while holding his counterpart Okafor to 10 points and 3 rebounds. Sam Dekker struggled on the night for the Badgers, including two rare air balls on 3-point attempts early on. He finished the night with just 12 points on 6-of-15 shooting from the floor.
Krzyzewski has led many different types of teams to the promise land, including this year's team led by mostly freshman, some of which may be one-and-done. 60 of the Blue Devils' 68 points were scored by freshman on Monday, the most in National Title game history.
Whether it's a team full of NBA stars, mostly seniors, or young freshman, Coach K has dealt with them all and won with them all. Monday night was proof that Krzyzewski belongs in the conversation as one of the greatest coaches in college basketball history.
