I am bummed out. Not because my bracket is busted, because it's not. To the contrary...I have never felt so dialed into anything in my life. I am compelled to post my first blog on Steemit in a couple of years. And why??? The blockchain. The blockchain can't cancel me. I actually need the blockchain and Steemit to feel comfortable going on the record. Call it a timestamp.
Here we are at the end of an era. This is the last year that Mike Krzyzewski, the coach of the Duke Blue Devils, will grace us with his sideline presence as he looks to win another National Championship. His personal history is truly iconic and "Coach K" has not only won 5 NCAA Championships, but he has also won Olympic Gold and coached the USA to gold in the FIBA World Cup. Yes, there is a "World Cup" in Basketball. Krzyzewski is the only one in history to have done this.
Before the season he declared that this would be his last season at Duke. He did this for a few reasons: first, to clear the air amid speculation that he may be leaving, also because he wanted to be true to recruits who may come to the University just to play for him. But more importantly, Coach K wanted to give Duke University ample time to deal with transition, as Duke is not just a school, or a basketball program, but an institution - the Gold Standard of sports programs, so to speak. Legacy is very important to Mike Krzyzewski, and so playing a part in finding the right replacement for him was important to not just to the school, but to him. Recently, Jon Scheyer, Associate Head Coach and former Duke player, has been tabbed to replace Krzyzewski. So everything is set for the Coach K's Final Dance. Time to enjoy the culmination of one of the greatest sports careers of all time.
Duke enjoyed one of the best recruiting classes going into the season. Many people, myself one of them, had Duke to win it all in March Madness based solely on a good incoming group of players and the coach's final season. Long story short, Duke won the ACC Conference Regular Season Title with games to spare. The icing on the cake would be the last game that Mike Krzyzewski was to coach at Cameron Indoor Arena - against their nemesis, the North Carolina Tar Heels.
The game with NC set records for the most expensive tickets to a regular-season college basketball game in history. Celebrities, politicians, former players and the "Cameron Crazies" paid beyond top dollar and waited for the chance to procure the most sought-after seat in sports. One thing was for sure, there was no way Duke was to going to get punked out by their rival on such an important day.
ESPN reported on the game all week as if it were the Super Bowl. The Duke Blue Devils were 11 point favourites against North Carolina, the #2 team in the conference and winner of 6 NCAA Championships, which is 3rd all-time behind only UCLA (11) and Kentucky (8). Duke looks to tie their divisional foe this year, should Duke win it all and send there beloved Coach off with one last trophy.
Well, Duke lost. At home. In front of the whole world. You'd assume that the arena was filled with sad hearts and upset bettors...not the case at all. Even though Duke lost the game by 13 points, there was nothing but love and respect for Krzyzewski from the sold-out standing-room-only crowd after the game. Mike came out to address the crowd with his beloved wife hand-in-hand. He apologised to the crowd for losing. As if they deserved better. He said he was sorry. People had come from all over the world and paid crazy money to be there, but he "let them down". But that wasn't all he said.
This loss marked the end of the "regular season". The "Second Season" (March Madness 64-team tournament) was still to come. Mike Krzyzewski almost seemed to speak in code as if to say "Sorry, my bad. But don't worry, the best is yet to come." And here we are, as Duke just eliminated Arkansas to claim a bid to the Final Four. Three of the four #1 seeds have already been bounced from the tournament, leaving only Kansas and Villanova as the other 2-seeds or better to remain in the tourney. Duke was also a number 2 seed, but now sits as the favourite to win it all.
I am so happy that Dick Vitale is still around. He has really taught me more about college hoops than anyone else in the world. He is a big Duke fan. In 1989, my father bought me his book titled "It's Tourney Time". I must say, it has been a bible of NCAA wisdom of sorts. In my years since then, I have been able to predict over 10 championship winners of the 64-team NCAA Basketball Tournament before the tournament ever started. I haven't seen the book in over 30 years, but the tid-bits of gold that "Dickey V" laid out have certainly made me a winner as well as one of his greatest fans. I expect that we'll see him at the Final 4. Coach K's send-off without Dick Vitale would just wouldn't be right.
But, a party, you ask? Yes, a party. The scheduling of the tournament has luckily landed long-time rival Tom Izzo and Michigan State on Duke's path to the Final Four. Krzyzewski was 12-3 against Izzo in their personal history. Make that now 13-3 after a closely-played game that was TV magic.
Fast forward to March 27, the day where NC has a chance to also punch their ticket to the Final Four. Only the 15-seed and all-time Cinderella, the Saint Peter's Peacocks, stand in their way. Should the Tar Heels win, they would line up against Duke in the Final Four. How crazy would that be??? Meeting the team that ruined your going-away party in the biggest match-up the two storied powerhouses ever had...
Call it what you want, but for me it's not just fun, and it's not just the end of an era. It's a salute that the Universe is sending to Coach Mike Krzyzewski for a life and career that have touched us all.
And yes, there is no way Duke doesn't take it all. The Universe would have it no other way.
