Coach K and Jay Bilas have opposing takes on Tennessee basketball's win over Duke

Mike Krzyzewski doesn't agree with Jay Bilas. Or if he does, he isn't saying it.

Krzyzewski, the legendary former Duke basketball coach, explained the Blue Devils' loss to Tennessee in March Madness' second round this way to Sirius XM this week:

"That's probably the worst team you can play there."

"They played outstanding defense, and their offense clicked in that game, and that's it."

The latter comments come after a polarizing and physical game that sparked scrutiny from fans and some media pundits after the Vols' 65-52 win in Orlando, Florida. Among those pushing back on UT's physicality was Jay Bilas, a former Duke player and the leading expert for ESPN's college basketball coverage.

"That Tennessee-Duke game, that was not a basketball game," Bilas said on Colin Cowherd's podcast Sunday. "It was officiated like a hockey game.

"There were fouls that were flagrant fouls that were not called flagrant. I can’t understand why. I’ve talked to several officials about it and all of them seem to agree that that should not have happened that way, but we’re seeing that more and more."

No. 4 seed Tennessee (25-10) will face No. 9 Florida Atlantic (33-3) in the Sweet 16 at New York's Madison Square Garden on Thursday (9 p.m., TBS). After FAU's win over Farleigh Dickinson in the second round, Owls coach Dusty May quipped his team was "going to study Australian rugby rules and get ready for the Vols."

On Monday, Tennessee coach Rick Barnes pushed back on the idea the Vols cross the line with their physicality. UT has been among the nation's top defensive teams this season and enters the Sweet 16 ranked third in scoring defense (57.8 ppg) and first in 3-point percentage defense (26.4%).

“I think playing good, hard basketball, it’s something nice to look at,” Barnes said. “I know our guys played hard. I know Duke played hard. From my perspective, I didn’t see anything dirty from either team.”

Or as Coach K put it:

"Tennessee, you know, they lost their point guard (Zakai Zeigler) about three weeks ago," he told Sirius XM. "Everyone was kind of putting dirt in their grave, and they didn't realize they're coached by one of the great coaches in our country in Rick Barnes. ... Hats off to Tennessee, they deserved to win."

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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Coach K, Jay Bilas have opposing takes Tennessee's NCAA win over Duke