GREENSBORO, NC (AP) – Duke has arrived at the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament hoping to make an unprecedented run to extend his long line of NCAA tournaments.
Instead, the Blue Devils had to abruptly withdraw from the tournament and end the season due to a positive COVID-19 test and quarantined results and contact tracking.
ACC announced that the Blue Devils quarterfinal game against state no. 15 in Florida for Thursday night was canceled. And athletic director Kevin White said Duke’s season is over, ending the Blue Devils’ 24 consecutive NCAA appearances that began in 1996.
In a statement, White said the positive test for someone in the program came after Wednesday’s victory over Louisville, the Blue Devils’ second victory in as many days in Greensboro. Prior to that, there were no positive tests throughout the season for a player or coach, he said.
“Since March last year, when the pandemic began, we have listened to our medical experts and we have always put safety at the forefront of any competition determination,” White said. “As a result, this will end our 2020-21 season. We want every team that still plays basketball in college to have a lot of health and everything that is better in the next few weeks. ”
The Blue Devils (13-11, 9-9 ACC) failed to rise to their top level, but coach Mike Krzyzewski said he loves this young team and is honored to coach it.
“We haven’t asked for more teams in our history and they deserve huge credit because they have managed everything like the outstanding young people they are,” Krzyzewski said in a statement. “I feel deeply for our players, who have done an extraordinary job all season, taking care of each other and the team.
“I am extremely proud of their collective attitudes and efforts, which could not have been stronger.”
With Duke’s retirement, the Seminoles advanced to the ACC semifinals to play North Carolina-Virginia Tech winner.
“I think preparing for the unexpected is what we’ve been trying to do all year,” said FSU coach Leonard Hamilton. “It is unfortunate that we will not be able to play this game today. But we have to do it in a mature way and be glad that no one put it in danger ”.
In addition, Louisville released a statement on Thursday stating that its tests came back negative following the Duke game and did not anticipate any concerns about following up on contacts.
“Our group is tested daily and on a way to have the necessary consecutive days of negative tests to be able to compete in the NCAA tournament,” the school said.
With the end of Duke’s season, it will mark the first time since 1976 that both the Blue Devils and another blue-blooded basketball player – Kentucky – will not be in the NCAA. Wild cats lost the opening of the Southeast Mississippi conference tour on Thursday, securing the program’s first lost season since 1988-89.
Duke had not missed the NCAA tournament in the 1994-95 season, when Krzyzewski gave up training due to complications from back surgery. Assistant Pete Gaudet took the lead, finishing 13-18 a year after Duke played in the NCAA title game.
Prior to that, Krzyzewski missed the Duke tournament only in his first three seasons, when he played a combined 38-47 and faced increasing pressure to turn things around, while neighbors Triangle North Carolina (1982) and North Carolina State (1983) won the NCAA Championships.
The first tournament auction came in 1984, and Duke won 37 games while reaching an NCAA final two years later. This was the first in a remarkable series of seven Final Four in nine years, which included championships in 1991 and 1992. Krzyzewski’s teams continued to win three more titles in 2001, 2010 and 2015.
This year opened with some of the same expectations, despite a young list that does not have the same talent prepared for the NBA in recent years, with names like Zion Williamson and Jayson Tatum.
The Blue Devils started the year in 9th place in the Top 25 AP, but were ranked until mid-January for the first time in almost five years. They usually missed the home advantage in a fan-free Cameron indoor stadium and saw top freshman Jalen Johnson leave the team. in February to prepare for the NBA draft.
After an abnormal loss to rival North Carolina, the Blue Devils knew they would probably need to win the ACC tournament to extend the NCAA series, even if no team won five games in five days in the tournament. They opened with a negative win against Boston College, then defeated Louisville in Wednesday’s quarterfinals after losing both regular-season games.
All the while, Krzyzewski said he focused more on developing a young group than past successes.
“This will pay off at some point if you stay with him,” Krzyzewski said after Notre Dame’s February loss. “He did it in ’82 and ’83, he did it in ’95 -96 and he did it in 2006. In our program there are moments when you learned to appreciate the gain that has reached such a high level. and how hard it is to lose.
“And we, as a program, must continue to learn this and appreciate everything that is needed to win. Don’t do this by not working hard or trying to improve. And that’s what we’re going to do. ”
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