|
|
 | |||||||||||||||||
|
|
Focused on business No. 1 Blue Devils vow to not overlook low seeds
Posted: Tuesday March 16, 1999 01:53 PM
DURHAM, N.C. (AP) -- Mike Krzyzewski didn't achieve a 45-12 career record in the NCAA tournament by overlooking opponents, and he isn't about to change now. "A lot of strange things happen in the NCAA tournament and we don't want to be one of them," the Duke coach said Monday when asked about an East Regional that has seen seeds 2-5 ousted from the postseason. The top-seeded Blue Devils (34-1), the prohibitive favorite to win the national title, might have gotten a few breaks over the weekend when the East bracket appeared to get easier with losses by high seeds Miami (Fla.), Cincinnati, Tennessee and Wisconsin. With those seeds gone, Duke will face 12th-seeded Southwest Missouri State (22-10) Friday at East Rutherford, N.J. If Duke wins its 30th straight, it will get the winner of No. 6 Temple and No. 10 Purdue in the regional title game. However, Krzyzewski won't let his team relax for one minute against what appears to be lesser competition. "I have no control over what happens in the tournament, but it is apparent that the teams that are playing best advance," Krzyzewski said. "I would rather play a team that is playing bad than a team that is playing great. "It is apparent that Southwest Missouri is playing great. We now have the opportunity to play the team that is playing great. If you get caught up with seeds ... I think that's for people who want us to get beat." Krzyzewski said anyone who reaches the tournament's round of 16 is capable, including Steve Alford's team. Southwest Missouri dismantled No. 4 seed Tennessee on Sunday, beating the Volunteers by 30. "I think if I was a player playing for Steve and I looked at him on the bench I would feel confident," Krzyzewski said of Alford, whom he called a close friend. "He knows what he's doing, he's been there, he is in command of the situation. I'm sure he has learned that from his dad and from playing for coach Knight, and playing in the pros." Duke won its first- and second-round NCAA games at the Charlotte Coliseum by 41 points each, against Florida A&M and Tulsa. The Blue Devils have won their last 11 by an average margin of 31 points. "We had fun playing, but we were real serious," Krzyzewski said of his team's two NCAA wins. "We respected every second we were out on the court. We got better in Charlotte. You get better by playing harder." Duke remains confident about reaching the Final Four -- but not overconfident considering the many upsets that have occurred in its region. "Coach has always preached respecting your opponent," said forward Shane Battier. "Throughout the year we've played teams where we've been favored by X amount of points, and on paper it looks like it can be a 100-point game, but we're always respected our opponent's effort and that's been key to us." The loss of No. 3 seed Cincinnati means Duke won't get a shot at beating the only team to defeat the Blue Devils this season. The Bearcats beat the Blue Devils 77-75 Nov. 28 in the Great Alaska Shootout. "A Final Four banner doesn't have the words, 'They played Cincinnati or they didn't play Cincinnati,'" Battier said. "If we can get one, I don't care who we play. We can play the 'Little Sisters of the Poor' and it would feel great."
| |||||||||||||||||
Copyright © 1999 CNN/SI. A Time Warner Company. Terms under which this service is provided to you.
| ||||||||||||||||||
