Coach K 'lucky' to coach Duke, excited for Final Four matchup with North Carolina

Duke and North Carolina have earned the title of greatest rivalry in college basketball over the years – and rightfully so. The Blue Devils and Tar Heels almost always compete at the highest level and play exciting games, which generates plenty of spotlight whenever the two teams collide on the court.

Despite all of the times Duke and North Carolina have met, they’ve never – not even once – faced off in the NCAA Tournament. But after many, many years, that’s finally changing – as the Blue Devils and Tar Heels will match-up Saturday night in the Final Four, setting up a rivalry game on the biggest stage.

As for legendary Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski, who’s heading into his final weeks as the Blue Devils’ longtime leader, he said he is excited to be able to play North Carolina in the NCAA Tournament for the first time – adding that the two teams earned this opportunity.

“The basketball gods put two very deserving programs there because both of us played well in four games to get here,” Krzyzewski said. “This is not somebody putting you there – it’s somebody earning the opportunity. I think this will be my 98th game that I’ve coached against North Carolina.

“Roy Williams and I, before Hubert [Davis] took over this year, we often remark how lucky we were to be the coaches of Duke and North Carolina because what people have done before us. … Players and coaches have really elevated this rivalry to such a high level – and to do it on this stage is pretty cool, really.”

No. 2 seeded Duke and No. 8 North Carolina are set to tipoff at 8:49 p.m. ET on Saturday at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, with TBS carrying the national broadcast. The winner will face the No. 1 Kansas/No. 2 Villanova winner in Monday night’s national championship game.