The NCAA Finals for Duke, with Mike Krzyzewski as coach, endured Thursday night’s epic Sweet 16 test as the Blue Devils outplayed Texas Tech 78-73 to reach the Elite Eight. The Blue Devils struggled in the first half against the Red Raiders’ vaunted defense but turned on the afterburner in the second half, coming on Saturday to face No. 4 seed Arkansas in the Elite Eight.
Duke trailed 33-29 at halftime before using an early offensive spurt in the second half to tie the score at 47 with 13:05 left. The teams then switched leaders, with Duke forward Paolo Bankero and Texas Tech’s Bryson Williams taking on the title roles in the thriller.
In the end, Duke Jeremy Roach again played a heroic role. After winning the clutch in the second half of the Blue Devils’ second-round win over Michigan State on Sunday, the sophomore quarterback did it again on Thursday. Roach hit a jumper with 2:16 left and another with 1:30 left to extend Duke’s lead from 69–68 to 73–68.
The win marks Krzyzewski’s 100th career NCAA Tournament victory, and he will be the 17th player in the Elite Eight on Saturday. Banchero led Duke with 22 points, while Williams led Texas Institute of Technology with 21.
CBS Sports will soon update this story with the findings.