NCAA Midwest Regional 2nd Round : Indiana, Duke Gain Semifinals

Indiana Coach Bob Knight and the most successful coach among his former assistants, Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski, are on a collision course.

Third-ranked Indiana and No. 17 Duke play in the Midwest Regional semifinals in Cincinnati after winning second-round games Saturday in the Midwest Regional.

Indiana (26-4) got 31 points from Steve Alford and 27 from Daryl Thomas to defeat Auburn, 107-90.

Duke (24-8) beat Xavier, 65-60, in the other game at the Hoosier Dome in Indianapolis.

“Knight and I are about as close friends as you can get,” said Krzyzewski, a former player and assistant coach under Knight. “I have more respect for him than any of my friends. I look at him as family. I played for him and I worked for him, and if there is one thing I learned, you do your best.

“Usually Knight and I watch each other’s teams and help each other out. Now, we’ll have to find each other’s weaknesses.”

Indiana fell behind, 24-10, but recovered to score its most points since a 110-62 victory over Grambling in the 1982-83 season.

“We would not have played the game at 100 points if we had our choice,” Knight said. “Auburn scored 24 points in the first six minutes and the tempo had already been dictated. We had to get back in it and it became a faster paced kind of game.”

Alford, who made seven three-point shots, moved into second on the all-time Big Ten scoring list with 2,344 points. He passed former Purdue star Rick Mount (2,323) and trails only ex-Michigan standout Mike McGee (2,439).

Indiana got 20 points and a team-record 15 assists from Keith Smart and 18 points and 13 rebounds from Rick Calloway. Mike Jones had 30 points for Auburn (18-13), and Jeff Moore added 23.

The game featured several heated exchanges between players as well as between coaches Knight and Sonny Smith of Auburn.

“We met at midcourt because the officials weren’t doing their job,” Smith said. “You don’t allow a game to get into a push and shove match.”

Duke 65, Xavier 60--Kevin Strickland hit four free throws in the final 20 seconds to get the Blue Devils past the Musketeers.

Strickland, 2 of 13 from the field, grabbed a rebound of his missed shot and sank two free throws with 20 seconds left, breaking a 60-60 tie, and then sealed the victory by making two more free throws with one second left.

“I tried to think of anything but the free throws,” said Strickland, an 83% free-throw shooter. “I knew they were important, and I felt if I made them our defense would get us through.

“I took a little longer than usual before taking the first, and after it went in, I was a lot more relaxed.”

The game was tied eight times before Strickland, who scored 12 points, gave the Blue Devils a 62-60 lead. Byron Larkin, who had 18 points, missed a 17-footer that would have tied it for Xavier (19-13). Duke’s Billy King grabbed the rebound and was fouled, making one free throw with six seconds left.

The doubleheader drew 34,183, breaking the NCAA second-round record mark of 27,454 set last year at the Metrodome in Minneapolis. Attendance for the two rounds here was a record 89,355.