On Saturday night in San Francisco, Duke gave Mike Krzyzewski the retirement gift he craved most: A record-setting 13th Final Four appearance.
Krzyzewski hugged his players and beamed with joy after his young, talented Blue Devils finished off a 78-69 Elite Eight victory over Arkansas to extend his farewell tour another week.
By vanquishing the fourth-seeded Razorbacks, Krzyzewski surpassed John Wooden for the most Final Four appearances by any college coach. UCLA's Wizard of Westwood went to the national semifinals 12 times from 1962 to 1975.
Awaiting Duke in New Orleans will either be the NCAA tournament’s darlings or the Blue Devils’ biggest rival.