Mike Krzyzewski explains how Duke has matured in recent weeks

The last month of the regular season was, for the most part, a successful one for the Duke Blue Devils. Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski believes that Duke has matured over recent weeks, which should prove to be valuable as the Blue Devils enter the NCAA Tournament and the final stages of the ACC Tournament.

To Krzyzewski, Duke’s ability to mature as a team was on display on Thursday in the ACC Tournament quarterfinals, where the Blue Devils defeated Syracuse, 88-79.

“Yeah, I think everyone stepped up,” Krzyzewski said. “Started with Wendell hitting the two free throws. You can’t practice those things. So for tomorrow, if we get a chance to play the next day but especially for next week, having — being in those situations really, really helps us. It helps us a lot.”

Next up for Duke is a matchup with Miami on Friday in the ACC semifinals. The winner of that game will play the winner of the other semifinal matchup between North Carolina and Virginia Tech.

Duke’s ability to mature has been key as Krzyzewski, others deal with a stomach bug

According to The Athletic’s Brendan Marks, Krzyzewski and others with the Duke program have been dealing with a stomach bug over recent days. With the ACC Tournament in full swing, Duke’s ability to mature as a team has played a big role.

“Coach K says that Duke was been dealing with some food poisoning or a stomach bug of some kind,” Marks tweeted. “Him, assistant Chris Carrawell, and A.J. Griffin, he mentioned, were throwing up all day yesterday.”

Krzyzewski wasn’t even sure if A.J. Griffin was going to play on Thursday. He ultimately played 22 minutes in the victory. Now, Krzyzewski is just hoping that the bug isn’t something that goes through the team.

“A.J., we weren’t sure if he was going to play,” Krzyzewski said. “We’re hoping it’s not a bug that goes through the team. A few of the kids are not up to par. Hopefully by tomorrow we’ll be in a lot better shape.”