Mike Krzyzewski and the Duke Blue Devils have been mired in mediocrity this season. Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

Mike Krzyzewski says Duke hasn't earned NCAA Tournament berth

It's been a rough season for head coach Mike Krzyzewski and the Duke Blue Devils. Coach K hit out at the NCAA hosting basketball seasons amid the COVID-19 pandemic, prematurely ended Duke's nonconference schedule, snapped at a student reporter following a loss and has endured three straight defeats that dropped the Blue Devils to an 11-11 overall record and a 9-9 mark in conference play. 

Krzyzewski admitted during his Sirius XM Radio show on Monday that his team probably needs to win the ACC Tournament to earn a berth in the NCAA Tournament. 

"As we start our ACC Tournament tomorrow, we’ll play Boston College," Krzyzewski said, per Austin Nivison of 247Sports. "You know, for us to even have a dream of getting into the NCAA Tournament, we have to do an amazing job to get into this tournament. Quite frankly, we haven’t earned that right. Even if we had beaten North Carolina, I still think we’d need to do more because we lost close games, and you have to reward the teams that do it, not just the fact that we’ve done it as a program. You’ve got to do it."

As David Thompson noted for The Fayetteville Observer, Duke last missed the big dance in 1995. Barring an unexpected run this week, it's likely the Blue Devils will be on the outside looking in come Selection Sunday. 

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