Coach K will attend Duke-Arizona. Why he says the game will be 'good for' the Blue Devils

Former Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski will be at the Blue Devils’ top-15 showdown against Arizona on Friday night at Cameron Indoor Stadium, Krzyzewski said on his weekly SiriusXM radio show.

“I’ll be at the game,” Krzyzewski said on his ‘Basketball and Beyond’ podcast.

“I’m gonna be at that game with my wife, Mickie. It’ll be interesting, because our team’s good and their team … they’re big. So, for our team to play against – not only an outstanding team, well-coached – I think it’ll be as big a team as we’ll play against all year. That’s good for us to be able to play a game at that level.”

It’ll be Coach K’s second game at Cameron since retirement. During the first media timeout of Friday's game, Duke basketball announced the former players in attendance before revealing Krzyzewski was in attendance. As expected, he received a rousing round of applause from the crowd.

A five-time national champion and the winningest coach in college basketball history, Krzyzewski coached the Blue Devils for 42 years before retiring at the end of the 2021-22 season. In 2001, Krzyzewski's Blue Devils earned an 82-72 win in the national championship.

DUKE-ARIZONA PREDICTION: Duke basketball vs. Arizona: Scouting report, prediction for Blue Devils-Wildcats

MARK MITCHELL INJURY: Will Mark Mitchell play vs. Arizona? What we know on Duke basketball starter

CALEB LOVE'S RETURN: Duke basketball’s Jon Scheyer, Kyle Filipowski discuss Caleb Love’s return

Following his retirement, Krzyzewski wanted to stay out of the spotlight as Jon Scheyer went through his first season as head coach of the Blue Devils. He made his first appearance as a “fan” last season in the Blue Devils’ 68-64 win against Notre Dame on Feb. 14.

“Yeah, it was awesome having him. … I don’t know how he felt sitting over there instead of on the bench, but it just means a lot,” Scheyer said that night.

“His support has been incredible, throughout this whole year, and throughout this whole process. I just wanted to make sure we got the win while he was here. It was really special for me to have him and Mickie (Krzyzewski) as well. That was a really cool thing for me, the team, and our staff.”

In mid-October, Krzyzewski was featured on Duke’s Brotherhood podcast with captain Ryan Young. On the episode, Krzyzewski said he planned to attend more games this season.

“I’ll go to more games this year, but I’m gonna sit in a different place," he said. ". … The further away you get from me coaching and now Jon is coaching, I think the easier it’ll be to go to a game. Because I want to support.”

Staff writer Rodd Baxley can be reached at rbaxley@fayobserver.com or @RoddBaxley on X/Twitter.

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Duke basketball's Coach K to attend Blue Devils’ game vs. Arizona