Farewell tour hits Big Easy

The Blue Devils get the retiring coach Krzyzewski to his record 13th Final Four.

SAN FRANCISCO — Mike Krzyzewski slowly climbed up the ladder, bowed to the adoring Duke fans and then pointed to his players to give them the credit before cutting the final string of the net.

Coach K’s farewell tour will end at his record-setting 13th Final Four.

The Blue Devils delivered their most complete performance of this NCAA tournament run to extend the career of their Hall of Fame coach for one more weekend after beating Arkansas 78-69 on Saturday night in the West Region final.

“To see the joy, I can’t explain it, because, you know, I’m a grandfather, I’ve lived through my daughters, I’m living through my grandchildren, but now I’m living through these guys,“Krzyzewski said.

A.J. Griffin scored 18 points, West Region MVP Paolo Banchero had 16 and and second-seeded Duke (32-6) frustrated fourthseeded Arkansas (28-9) on the offensive end.

Coach K will try to follow the path of the only coach to win more NCAA men’s titles as John Wooden won his 10th championship in his final season at UCLA in 1975. Krzyzewski broke the tie he had with Wooden for most Final Four appearances with the commanding win over the Razorbacks.

“I’m so happy. We call it crossing the bridge,” said Krzyzewski, who announced last summer this season would be his last.

Duke’s matchup in New Orleans next Saturday will be historic either way — either its first NCAA tournament meeting with archrival North Carolina or an unfathomable tangle in the national semifinals with 15thseeded Saint Peter’s.

Williams led Arkansas with 19 points and 10 rebounds and JD Notae had 14 points before fouling out.