Morry Gash, Associated Press Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski walks on the court during practice Friday in San Antonio. Click photo for larger image. NCAA TOURNAMENT COVERAGE: NCAA Notebook: Yellow Jackets enjoy role as underdogs Vaughan 80 minutes away from a well-deserved title Cook: UConn's Calhoun knows he has husky talent

-- Connecticut sophomore Rashad Anderson

That snippet from the Connecticut locker room yesterday offers some insight into the presence Duke commands in college basketball.

Being a college basketball player in this era means being cognizant of the Duke Blue Devils at all times. They are Notre Dame football of a bygone era, the New York Yankees, the Los Angeles Lakers.

Love them or hate them, the Blue Devils win more consistently than any other team in their sport.

When Duke and Connecticut meet in a national semifinal game tonight, coach Mike Krzyzewski will be coaching in his 10th Final Four in the past 19 years.

Only one other team in the history of NCAA men's basketball has enjoyed such a sustained run of excellence over that length of time.

UCLA, the standard bearer for NCAA men's basketball excellence, advanced to 12 Final Fours from 1962-75 and won the championship 10 times under John Wooden.

That kind of run probably never will be duplicated in this era of the college game. The very best players go straight to the NBA or spend one or two seasons in college honing their game. Plus, there are scholarship limitations and more parity among the top conferences.

All of which is why Krzyzewski's record is getting more and more attention. Already recognized as the best coach of his era, Krzyzewski is making a push for his name to be etched alongside Wooden, former Kentucky coach Adolph Rupp, former North Carolina coach Dean Smith and Texas Tech coach Bobby Knight when it comes to being among the top coaches of all-time.

Only Wooden (12) and Smith (11) have coached in more Final Fours.

Only Smith has more NCAA tournament victories. Krzyzewski can tie Smith at 65 with a win tonight. Krzyzewski is 64-16 in NCAA tournament games.

Only Wooden has a better winning percentage in tournament games (82.5 percent to 79.4 percent) and more Final Four victories (21 to 10).

Only Wooden (10) and Rupp (4) have more NCAA titles.

"He's rewriting the history books here, and I'm a part of it," said Shavlik Randolph, a sophomore forward for the Blue Devils. "People can see it on TV and see the numbers but not get an appreciation for what a great accomplishment it is.

"To think about Coach getting here 10 different times, it's just incredible. I'm doing it one time, and this is something I'm going to remember for the rest of my life. I hope to do it again, but getting here 10 times? I just can't imagine that."

Krzyzewski got to his first Final Four in 1986. The longest Duke has gone without reaching a Final Four since is four years. From '86-94, the Blue Devils played in seven of nine Final Fours.

For Krzyzewski, getting to this point never gets old because he is given a new perspective each time. Only one player on this year's team played in a Final Four -- senior point guard Chris Duhon, a starter on the 2001 championship team that beat Arizona in the title game.

"If you celebrated Christmas alone year after year, it might not be as good," Krzyzewski said. "But if you have kids and then grandkids, you see it through their eyes. It rekindles some of the memories from your previous experiences.

"I'm probably more excited, or will be, than my players. As long as I can feel that and continue to see that through these kids' eyes, it's one of the reasons I've stayed a college coach, because there's a genuineness. It's priceless, just like kids and grandkids."

Duke has the mystique and the tradition, but Connecticut is the favorite heading into the game tonight. The Huskies have a couple of future NBA lottery picks in Emeka Okafor and Ben Gordon, while the Blue Devils have a bunch of good college players who might not make it at the next level.

But when Duke gets to this stage of the tournament, Krzyzewski and the Blue Devils usually have that special something that makes them, well, Duke. Krzyzewski is 7-2 in national semifinals , with the only losses coming in 1988 and '89 against Kansas and Seton Hall. The past six times Duke has played on a Saturday at the Final Four, it has advanced to the title game.

"It says a lot about the program and Coach K," said Duke sophomore forward Shelden Williams. "He keeps coming back and coming back, so he knows what it takes to win.

"Anytime you're playing for a person like that, who's been in the Final Four, you have that much more confidence."