- Duke’s last home game at Cameron Indoor Stadium ended in a 94-81 defeat to North Carolina, but Mike Krzyzewski seemed to be relieved that it was over.
- It was difficult for Krzyzewski to realize that his career was coming to an end as he addressed the gathering of fans who had gathered to say their goodbyes, some of whom had paid upwards of $10,000 for their tickets. What I’m saying is that the regular season has come to a close.
- Despite the fact that Saturday was not the formal conclusion of his farewell tour, he expressed his gratitude that it had come to an end.
- One of the reasons Krzyzewski announced his retirement in June of last year is to have one more season to concentrate exclusively on coaching without the distractions of recruiting or worrying about the future. However, such scheme was doomed to failure. Krzyzewski, the all-time winningest coach in basketball, wasn’t going to be forgotten by the rest of the sport. A requiem was in order for his storied career.
- As a result, Krzyzewski was the star of every stop on the tour this season. In certain places, there were awards. Emotional reunions occur at other times. There was no hoopla in North Carolina a month ago, just opposing supporters venting their wrath on the enemy once again. As an afterthought, Duke won all but four of the basketball games they played.
- Saturday finally arrived!
- For months, the Blue Devils had been keeping an eye on this one. It was a rivalry game, of course, but they’d already thrashed North Carolina in Chapel Hill, a statement win in a season in which Duke has also beaten Gonzaga and Kentucky. The game didn’t have much of an impact on the overall rankings. The Blue Devils had already claimed the ACC regular-season championship with a 7-game winning run. But Saturday was about this team sending Krzyzewski go in style, writing its own page in the history books. That, however, did not come to pass at all.
- “I’d be lying if I claimed I didn’t know this day was approaching,” star forward Paolo Banchero remarked. “Everyone was aware of it. This isn’t just another video game. I couldn’t stress how crucial it was. It’s a bummer that we lost.”
- Funny thing is, Krzyzewski didn’t seem to mind all that much.
- “I’m glad this is over,” Krzyzewski said. “Let’s just coach and see what happens in the tournaments. It’s been a surreal few days.”
- The whole ride has been surreal — part documentary, part eulogy, part circus and, somewhere in the mix, basketball. After Saturday’s loss, before the postgame ceremonies began, Krzyzewski apologized to the fans in attendance, and in unison, they refused to accept it. They weren’t here to see Duke win — even in a game against hated North Carolina. They were here for Krzyzewski, results be damned.
- This is uncharted territory at a place like Duke, for a coach like Krzyzewski. Winning is always job No. 1. And perhaps that’s what has felt so off-kilter this season. There was winning, but only in the context of what it meant for the larger narrative. And Saturday was the final curtain, the climax of the story Krzyzewski set in motion back in June.
- Banchero, like his coach, wanted to find some meaning in the loss. It was a lesson. It was motivation. It was catharsis.
- What it really was, however, was the ending Duke had been waiting for — for better or worse.
- Endings, of course, are followed by new beginnings, and that seemed to be what mattered most for Krzyzewski on Saturday. For his team, too.
- The story of his retirement will continue into the ACC and NCAA tournaments, but it will no longer be center stage. The camera will pan away from the coach, at least for a while, and focus on the team — a team Krzyzewski truly believes is good enough to win it all.
- Banchero noted that the worst moments of Duke’s season have all come here, at Cameron, in front of the home fans, who’ve turned out each game to pay respects in a countdown to Saturday.
- There are no more home games, and that’s fine.
- “On the road and everywhere else we’ve been hungry, and we won’t be playing the NCAA tournament here,” Banchero said. “We’re looking forward to going on the road and making up for it.”
- It’s not so much an opportunity for atonement, however, as it is a chance to turn the page, to look at what lies ahead rather than the 42 years of Krzyzewski’s career that preceded this final run.
- Banchero is still one of the most dynamic big men in the country. Wendell Moore Jr. remains the veteran commanding the offense, the beating heart of the roster. Mark Williams, AJ Griffin, Jeremy Roach, Trevor Keels — they all seem to fit their roles exactly as they should, as if this was the real story Krzyzewski wanted to script for this season. And now, after a year of games that were about something more than just the final score, it’s the team that’s center stage.
- That’s the real ending Krzyzewski wanted.
- “I wanted this year to be a really good coaching job, not a retirement year, and to stay hungry,” he said. “I think I have, and I will. Until this is done.”
