Coach K: I’m Just Saying the Game Shouldn’t be Played That Way

Coach K made sure his complaints about physical play didn't take away from Louisville's win

After expressing his frustration with the way the physical play in the loss to Louisville was officiated, Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski wanted to make sure he wasn’t taking away from the Cardinals’ win.

“I’m not a sour grapes guy,” Krzyzewski said. “I’m a stand-up guy. Give them credit. I’m just saying the game shouldn’t be played that way. We should have freedom of movement. They did their stuff better than we did, and they deserved to win. That’s all I’m gonna … I’m not gonna talk about that crap any more. Because it’s gonna sound … you all will make it sound like I don’t want it to sound. We lost, and whenever I’m here and we lose, I always credit the opponent. And I never throw my own team under the bus ever... ever. I’m not going to make damn excuses. I just said that they could’ve beaten us another way too. God bless them.”

When asked about the slow start to the game, where Louisville built a 15-point lead in the first 10 minutes of play, Krzyzewski said, “We were knocked back. The physicality of the game was amazing. We could’ve been blown out by 30 or 40 points. Our kids came back and put us in a position to win. I’m proud of my guys. We learned a lot tonight. It’s a process. It’s a journey. This was a big-time game for us. That we were not good enough at the end. I thought we were really tired and their maturity and depth got us at the end.”