Former Duke player describes Coach K's way of dumbing down March Madness bracket into micro tournaments

Looking astatine 68 teams successful a March Madness bracket tin beryllium beautiful overwhelming, particularly for those playing successful nan tournament.

However, erstwhile Duke subordinate Jay Bilas said his legendary erstwhile caput coach, Mike Krzyzewski, had a superb measurement of dumbing it down to return nan unit disconnected nan Blue Devils.

"I played for Coach K astatine Duke and successful 1986, my elder year, that was nan 2nd twelvemonth of nan 64-team bracket," Bilas told Fox News Digital successful a caller interview. "And he collapsed nan tourney down to fundamentally a four-team tourney nan first weekend. He talked astir nan other broadside of our bracket, nan 32 teams other our broadside and said, ‘Look astatine each those teams successful there,’ and started talking astir really bully immoderate of them were. And past he goes, 'Who cares? Only 1 squad is coming retired of there. Only 1 squad comes retired of there. Whatever happens, fine. We'll play that 1 squad connected Monday nighttime for nan championship.'

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Head coach Mike Krzyzewski of nan Duke Blue Devils reacts successful nan first half of nan crippled against nan North Carolina Tar Heels during nan 2022 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Final Four semifinal astatine Caesars Superdome connected April 2, 2022 successful New Orleans, Louisiana.  (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

"And truthful he gave america a bracket. It was a four-team bracket, and we were playing astatine Greensboro successful nan first and 2nd rounds. I deliberation he called it nan Greensboro Invitational and said, ‘This is each we sewage to interest about.’ And we're like, ‘Geez, we tin process that.’ He made it easier. And past nan 2nd week, aforesaid thing. We played astatine nan Meadowlands - Meadowlands Invitational. We played DePaul, and past David Robinson and Navy was connected nan different broadside of that. So we only had to woody pinch a four-team tournament. Then we get to nan Final Four, four-team tournament. And it really made it a batch easier."

Now, for illustration nan remainder of us, Bilas watches nan tourney arsenic a fan. And this year, he will beryllium enjoying it pinch immoderate ice-cold Garage Beer, founded by Travis and Jason Kelce.

Jay Bilas will beryllium enjoying March Madness pinch Garage Beer. (Garage Beer)

"I like beer, and I for illustration garages," Bilas joked, adding that nan Kelce brothers are a cardinal logic why he wanted to beryllium a spokesperson for nan beverage this March Madness. "I astir apt shouldn't beryllium talking astir really overmuch I for illustration beer, but I for illustration brew and I for illustration Garage Beer. And there's thing amended than tourney time, and those 2 things spell together really well. I effort to debar it erstwhile I'm connected nan air, but I'm conscionable for illustration everybody other — erstwhile there's a bully crippled on, I for illustration to ace 1 open."

And contempt apt being several Garage Beers deep passim nan tournament, location is simply a bully chance that Bilas, a self-proclaimed March Madness "nerd," will beryllium capable to retrieve conscionable astir everything from this tournament.

However, because of Coach K's bracket practice, that encyclopedia successful Bilas' encephalon doesn't person galore pages connected 1986.

"I tin talk to you astir games that happened astatine conscionable astir immoderate tourney and retrieve it. I don't retrieve what happened successful that 1986 tournament," Bilas said. "Because each I cared astir was what we did. I mean, it's really benignant of remarkable. I don't really retrieve thing other because of nan measurement Coach K presented it to america and nan measurement we approached it. And I cognize a batch of teams do that now, and I, astatine slightest speaking for me, I thought that was extraordinarily adjuvant to us."

Duke caput coach Mike Krzyzewski yells during nan first half of a assemblage hoops crippled against Cal State Fullerton successful nan first information of nan NCAA tourney connected Friday, March 18, 2022, successful Greenville, S.C.  (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

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The Blue Devils are nan No. 1 wide seed this twelvemonth and are aiming for their first title since 2015.

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