What is worse, the Duke coach said, his players are bound to be treated as villains in Lexington.

"If that ever happened at our place - it would never happen at our place," the Duke coach said.

"People are saying we'll probably lose," Krzyzewski, the Duke coach, said.

"Instead of saying we're not sure if we can do this, we've always said we're really good," the 19-year Duke coach said.

Mike Krzyzewski, the Duke coach, looks at the challenge as a poker hand.

The Duke coach said, "He couldn't do that if the foot wasn't sound."

A number of delegates laughed, but the Duke coach was not amused.

They have three adult children, all daughters, meaning that the Duke coach has long dwelled in a world of women.

The Duke coach counts several corporate titans among his close friends.

Kentucky may be on a mission, but so is the Duke coach.