Coach K Joins the 800 Club

Earlier this year former Texas Tech Coach Bobby Knight secured his 900th career victory. Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski is not far behind.

On Saturday, “Coach K” witnessed his 800th career victory, as the Blue Devils defeated the North Carolina State Wolfpack by a score of 87-86. Despite the win, it was clear that Duke was panicking throughout, as the team did not want to experience another road loss.

"For a couple of late timeouts, I let anyone who would actually want to talk -- and say something that somebody would listen to -- run the huddle," Krzyzewski said. "Teams become really good when they talk to each other. What happens is, they take ownership. We never took ownership of this game until late in the second half."

The Blue Devils were lead by senior DeMarcus Nelson, who took charge when the team was down. With just one minute remaining, Nelson hit two key free throws and had 19 total points. Sophomore teammate Jon Scheyer also played a vital role, scoring 19 points as well. Surprisingly, the Blue Devils were coming off of a two-game losing streak on the road. It was clear that they desperately needed the victory to gain some momentum going into the NCAA tournament.

"N.C. State really outplayed us the whole game except for the last 8 minutes," said DeMarcus Nelson. "Everything was going for them, but the thing about it is, we pulled together as a team. ... It just clicked for us -- in the last 8 minutes, we started making the plays that we needed to win."

Junior guard Greg Paulus also made contributions, scoring 15 and hitting two huge 3 pointers during the 14-5 run that the Blue Devils put up at the end of the second half. Kyle Singler and Gerald Henderson each added 12 points as well. Though Duke did struggle, they were fortunate enough to get input from everyone on the floor.

"It is hard to put it in perspective because ... you're coaching this team, and it's more important what this team is doing than what you've done with other teams," Krzyzewski said.

Coach Krzyzewski became just the sixth NCAA Division 1 coach ever to reach 800 career victories. In his 33 seasons, he has compiled an 800-264 record, a remarkable statistic. In his 28-year tenure with Duke, Coach Krzyzewski has leaded the Blue Devils to 3 NCAA Championships, 10 Final Four appearances, and 10 ACC Championships. He is also second among active coaches behind Eddie Sutton after securing his 800th win. Starting at Duke in 1980, it is amazing what Coach K has done to the program. In total, he has won 12 National Coach of the Year awards. No doubt a future Hall of Famer, Coach Krzyzewski has much more to look forward to, as many believe that he will eventually pass Bobby Knight on the all-time career wins list.