After feeling poorly and missing the second half of Duke’s 76-74 win over Wake Forest on Tuesday night, Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski spent Wednesday recuperating and is feeling well enough to return to work on Thursday.
“Coach is feeling a lot better,” Duke associate head coach Chris Carrawell said on the Duke basketball radio show Wednesday night.
The Blue Devils had a scheduled day off from practice on Wednesday. The 75-year-old Krzyzewski would normally go to his office to prepare for the next game. But he rested at home instead.
He’s planning to be at work Thursday, when the Blue Devils return to practice in preparation for Saturday’s home game against Florida State.
“He’ll be back for Saturday,” Carrawell said.
Krzyzewski began experiencing some lightheadedness during the first half Tuesday night while he coached Duke against Wake Forest.
At halftime, Krzyzewski began receiving medical attention and the decision was made for associate head coach Jon Scheyer to coach the team in the second half.
“Clearly, coach wasn’t himself,” Scheyer said Tuesday night. “He wasn’t right.”
After the game, Krzyzewski already felt better and spoke to the team about its narrow win.
“First and foremost we were concerned about coach and his health,” Scheyer said. “Coach is doing better. He’s in a much better place.”
Said Duke freshman forward Paolo Banchero, “He’s one of the toughest guys I know. He came and gave us a talk, just like he would have had he been coaching.”
Krzyzewski’s wife, Mickie, left her usual seat where she watched the game during the first half and did not return for the second half.
This is the second time Krzyzewski has been unavailable to coach the Blue Devils this season. Both times have been against Wake Forest.
Due to a non-COVID illness, Krzyzewski did not travel with the team to Winston-Salem when Duke beat Wake Forest 76-64 on Jan. 12 at Joel Coliseum. Scheyer also coached the team that night.
