SALT LAKE CITY -- It is easy to forget how skilled of a college basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski is. Leading his teams to nine Final Fours and three national championships, Krzyzewski makes it seem as if it is his birthright to win over and over again. But the West Point graduate's game plan for the Central Michigan Chippewas showed once again that there is a non-apriori reason that he is the best collegiate coach of his generation.
Immediately following Duke's 67-57 win over Colorado State, Krzyzewski's knowledge of the Central Michigan squad was ignorant to the point of comedy.
"I don't know too much about Central Michigan, and I shouldn't," Krzyzewski said. "I do know they have the big kid."
But like every person who is greatly successful in his or her field, there was a method to his madness.
"I've coached in over 70 NCAA games, and I have never looked at an opponent, beyond the opponent I play," Krzyzewski said. "I think it's the reason why we've advanced pretty much in good shape. I will know [about Central Michigan] by tomorrow."
Though it seemed like a skeptical claim at first, from the opening minutes of the second round game it was readily apparent that Krzyzewski had completely discovered the Chippewas weaknesses, and knew exactly how to exploit them.
In Central Michigan's 79-73 upset win over Creighton Thursday, the Chippewas showed they were a team of great talent, but minimum depth. Central Michigan developed a 26-point lead early in the second half of its first-round win, but because of fatigue it nearly squandered its chance to face the Blue Devils before it rallied to a six point win.
Immediately taking advantage of this observation, Saturday the Blue Devils started the game at breakneck speed, racing up and down the court.
Chris Duhon's aggressive play set the tone, as he forced the Chippewas to struggle to get back on defense nearly every possession. Senior Dahntay Jones most benefited from the run-and-gun style of play, scoring 12 of the Blue Devils' first 16 points en route to his career high 28 points.
Krzyzewski also substituted at a far greater pace, replacing players ten different times in the first half alone to keep the Blue Devils noticeably more fresh than the panting Chippewas. It was in this rapid substitution that Krzyzewski found an effective neutralizer to Chris Kaman.
The MAC offensive and defensive player of the year is exactly the type of player with which the Blue Devils match-up worse: a big-man with considerable skill.
"I thought [Kaman] was the best center we've played against because he can really run, he can used both hands and if he's fouled, he can hit free-throws," Krzyzewski said.
When little used freshman center Michael Thompson entered the game with 11:23 remaining in the first half, the 7-foot Kaman had already scored half of Central Michigan's 16 points. But Thompson's big frame and determined play made the tall Chippewa struggled to only five more points in the half, shooting under 50 percent for the first twenty minutes compared to the 63 percent he shoots on the season.
"Thompson banged in there," Smith said. "He's a pretty good player."
But it was through educating his players of Central Michigan's defensive tendencies, the Blue Devils were able to break the Chippewas off the dribble with ease, leading to Jones' career-high and Chris Duhon's 16 points and eight assists.
However, Krzyzewski will need to create even greater plans to continue to advance in the tournament, as high-powered Kansas and Arizona will also make the trip to Anaheim, Calif., next week. However, it would not surprise Smith if the Blue Devils prevailed.
"If they play as well as they did... they'll be difficult to beat down the stretch," Smith said. "In the two games before they make it to the Final Four, they'll be tough to deal with."
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