Duke Coach Collapses in Game

Krzyzewski Has Brief Dizzy Spell but Doesn't Leave Court: Duke 82, Georgia Tech 65

J.J. Redick of Duke (26 points) uses a head fake to get Ismail Muhammad into the air. (Gerry Broome -- AP)

DURHAM, N.C., Feb. 5 -- Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski collapsed during a timeout in Saturday's game against visiting Georgia Tech, but he quickly recovered and watched the No. 4 Blue Devils dismantle No. 25 Georgia Tech, 82-65, before a crowd of 9,314 at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Krzyzewski, who turns 58 on Feb. 13, fell to the floor during the second timeout of the game, with the Blue Devils leading 15-12 with 11 1/2 minutes remaining in the first half. After pleading to official Larry Rose that guard Daniel Ewing had been fouled, Krzyzewski collapsed and lay on his side for a few seconds. He was helped up by trainers and gave his players instructions before they returned to the floor.

Krzyzewski's wife, Mickie, rushed to the floor from her seat in the stands and talked with trainers at the end of the bench. Krzyzewski, who has led the Blue Devils to three national championships and 10 appearances in the Final Four, including last season, said doctors checked his blood pressure at halftime. After the game, he called the episode a "minor" incident.

"When you get up real quick, sometimes you get light-headed," Krzyzewski said. "Over my 30 years of coaching, it has happened a lot, but it hasn't happened this year. Usually, you've got your feet under you and have a good base under you. . . . I didn't have my feet under me. I felt like a guy who threw a fight. It was like a sucker punch."

When Krzyzewski returned to his feet, he turned to official Reginald Cofer and started arguing the foul again before walking into Duke's huddle. After the timeout, Krzyzewski drank water and patted his forehead several times with a towel.

"I felt like a chump," Krzyzewski said. "Like somebody hit me with an air punch and I'm out. I'm going to the floor and I'm thinking, 'What an idiot,' and I know I'm going to get it from my daughters and my wife. I've got to deal with that forever now."

Krzyzewski's dizzy spell was the only scare for the Blue Devils (17-2, 7-2 ACC) during the game. The Yellow Jackets (13-7, 4-5) led 10-8 early in the first half, but after Duke went ahead 12-10 on junior Shelden Williams's two foul shots with 13 minutes 24 seconds left, Georgia Tech did not lead again.

Junior J.J. Redick led the Blue Devils with 26 points and made 6 of 15 three-point attempts. Williams scored 15 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and blocked six shots, and Ewing had 16 points and five assists. Point guard Jarrett Jack led the Yellow Jackets with 18 points and six assists.

The Yellow Jackets cut Duke's lead to 34-33 after Anthony Morrow's three-pointer with 3:19 left in the first half. But with Jack on the bench with two fouls, Georgia Tech became discombobulated on offense, scoring only two points on its final five possessions of the half. Meantime, the Blue Devils scored 10 points in the final 3:02 to go ahead 44-35 at halftime. The Yellow Jackets made only one field goal in the first five minutes of the second half and did not get closer than eight points again.

"They're a lot different" when Jack isn't in the game, Ewing said. "They're a lot different because as Jarrett Jack goes, so goes Georgia Tech. He's their focal point, especially at the point guard position."

In all, Duke forced 18 turnovers and limited the Yellow Jackets to three baskets on fast breaks.

"I thought it was a continuation of how we finished the Wake Forest game," Krzyzewski said, referring to his team's 92-89 loss on Wednesday. "Instead of doing it in the second half and coming on strong, I thought we were that way the whole game and we needed to be."

Georgia Tech lost for the fifth time in its last seven games and has lost each of its four ACC road games. The Yellow Jackets expect to get back senior guard B.J. Elder, who has missed the entire ACC schedule because of a strained left hamstring, sometime next week.

"Right now, we're not tough enough to win on the road," Georgia Tech Coach Paul Hewitt said. "Point blank; can't sugarcoat it. I know we have it in us. I'm to blame as much as anybody. But on the road, you've got to show some toughness, and I don't think we've done that."