
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, March 30, 1990                   TAG: 9003300060
SECTION: SPORTS                    PAGE: B7   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: DENVER                                LENGTH: Medium

COACH K'S ETHIC MANIFESTS ITSELF IN DUKE PLAYERS

Duke's basketball players say much of Mike Krzyzewski's success lies not with his on-court coaching, but with his ability to make the Blue Devils believe in his blue-collar work ethic.

"I think what makes him unique is when he achieves success, it makes him hungrier to have success again," said Alaa Abdelnaby, Duke's 6-foot-10 senior center.

Evidence of that success is on display at the Final Four, where Krzyzewski's Blue Devils are making their third consecutive appearance and fourth in five years.

Duke has made the NCAA Tournament seven times in 10 years under Krzyzewski, the son of an elevator operator from Chicago.

Krzyzewski's 230 victories make him the winningest coach in Duke history, and his 20-6 mark in the NCAA Tournament gives him the best percentage (.769) among active coaches.

Krzyzewski, 43, is a 1969 graduate of Army, where he played under Bobby Knight. Krzyzewski was an assistant to Knight at Indiana for a year before returning to Army in 1976 as head coach, a position he held for five years.

Throughout his coaching career, Krzyzewski's teams have tended to be more functional than flashy. He drives his players, but he also doesn't want to be so hard on them that he destroys their confidence.

"In order for somebody to pay attention to you or to his teammates, he has to feel confident about who he is," said Krzyzewski, whose Blue Devils meet Arkansas on Saturday in one semifinal. Nevada-Las Vegas faces Georgia Tech in the other game.

"As a coach, you never know what's going to happen, but as it's happening, you know if it's good or bad, and you take appropriate steps to make sure that it's going to be good more than bad," he said. "When you're working with somebody on anything, they're giving you as much as you're giving them. If they listen to you, it gives you enthusiasm. A relationship forms, and it's a good relationship."

Point guard Bobby Hurley is only a freshman, but he already has witnessed Krzyzewski's driving will to succeed.

"He's scrapping for everything," Hurley said. "He probably works harder than any guy on the team."

Hurley and Abdelnaby said Krzyzewski's attitude is infectious, breeding a feeling of confidence among the players.

"Each of us collectively has confidence in every person on our team," Abdelnaby said. "There's a `You carry me this time, I'll carry you next time' kind of attitude. We don't really say it to each other, but it's understood."

Duke has yet to win the NCAA Tournament under Krzyzewski, but Abdelnaby said that does not seem to affect his coach.

"I think if he is ever to win the national championship," Abdelnaby said, "he'd be just as hungry, if not hungrier, to win it again."

by CNB