Just call him Duke’s ‘Coach 1K’
Coach 1K. How grand.
Mike Krzyzewski earned his 1,000th career win Sunday, making him the first NCAA Division I men’s coach to reach the milestone, when No. 5 Duke surged past St. John’s in the second half for a 77-68 victory at Madison Square Garden.
Tyus Jones scored 22 points and the Blue Devils (17-2) went on an 18-2 run down the stretch to put Krzyzewski in four figures on his first try.
Jahlil Okafor had 17 points and 10 rebounds, combining with Jones and Quinn Cook (17 points) to fuel the decisive spurt after Duke trailed by 10 with 8:15 remaining. That’s when the Blue Devils finally began to look like a Krzyzewski-coached team, picking up their defense and hustling to loose balls as he urged them on from one knee in front of the bench. Duke outworked the Red Storm on the glass and held them without a field goal for 6 pivotal minutes.
When the final horn sounded, Duke players engulfed Krzyzewski, and he received a bear hug from assistant Jeff Capel. Players were given T-shirts that read “1,000 Wins And Kounting.”
“We were so gritty in the last 10 minutes,” Krzyzewski said. “It was tough to get involved with 1,000. I was just trying to survive this game, which is how you get to 1,000.”
A public address announcement offered congratulations to Krzyzewski from St. John’s, and Duke fans at a packed Garden chanted his name and held aloft “K” signs.
“I’m in it right now. I wasn’t in it until now,” he said. “You know, to see the happiness of my players makes it good. We have to keep it in perspective. It makes us 17-2 and we’ve got to go to Notre Dame on Wednesday, but for this moment, for basketball, for the game and for this program, we’ll enjoy this one right now.”
Sir’Dominic Pointer had 21 points and 10 rebounds for the Red Storm (13-6), who were looking for a huge win to put on their NCAA tournament resume. They were in position to get it, but got worn down late by Duke and let this one slip away.
Iowa 54, Illinois State 53: Nate Buss hit a 3-pointer from the corner with 5 seconds left and No. 20 Northern Iowa edged Illinois State 54-53.
Butler 77, Seton Hall 57: Andrew Chrabascz scored 15 of his 16 points in the first half to lead the Butler Bulldogs to a 77-57 blowout of No. 24 Seton Hall.
Wichita State 74, Drake 40: Ron Baker scored 15 points and No. 14 Wichita State breezed past Drake 74-40 for its 26th straight win in the Missouri Valley Conference.
Ohio State 82, Indiana 70: D’Angelo Russell scored 22 points and added 10 assists, Jae’Sean Tate added a career-high 20 points, and Ohio State defeated No. 23 Indiana 82-70.
Virginia 50, Virginia Tech 47: Justin Anderson scored eight of his 12 points during a late 12-0 run and No. 2 Virginia barely escaped a sold-out Cassell Coliseum with a 50-47 victory against Virginia Tech.
Boston College 64, Georgia Tech 62: Olivier Hanlan scored 25 points, including a go-ahead basket with 1:10 remaining, and Boston College held off Georgia Tech 64-62 for its first ACC win.
Rhode Island 53, St. Bonaventure 48: Jared Terrell scored a career-high 19 points and Hassan Martin had two blocks in the final minute to help Rhode Island hold off St. Bonaventure 53-48.