Fast Break

Basketball

Krzyzewski gets No. 700

Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski reached another coaching milestone as the Blue Devils used a fast start to beat Georgia Tech 71-62 Sunday for Krzyzewski’s 700th victory at the school.

Krzyzewski improved to 700-198 in his 27th season as the Blue Devils’ coach, and his career record of 773-257 includes five seasons at Army.

“I had no idea about 700. Are you kidding me?” Krzyzewski said. “We (were) 6-6 in the conference. … so I was shocked at the end of the game.”

Basketball

Students looking to save the chief

As the clock counted down during Illinois’ win over Northwestern, the Assembly Hall fans in Champaign, Ill., chanted a simple, one-line wish.

“Save the chief! Save the chief! Save the chief!”

It seems unlikely that wish will come true.

Sunday was the first Illinois basketball game since the university announced this school year will be the last for Chief Illiniwek, the school’s 81-year-old American Indian mascot.

The halftime of Wednesday’s Michigan-Illinois basketball game will see the last performance for the chief.

Students are circulating e-mails and messages on social-networking Web sites with plans for, among other things, a vigil this week outside university President Joseph B. White’s house.

Those at Sunday’s game appeared to be unanimously unhappy about the decision but low-key in their dissent.

“Halftime will definitely be different,” said 19-year-old freshman Kim Cozza of Rolling Meadows, a member of the Orange Krush student section.

But it was hard to notice anything was different.

Dan Maloney, the graduate student who portrays the chief, showed no emotion on the arena floor, but said afterward that Wednesday might be different.

“I don’t even want to think about that right now,” he said. “I’ll take a little bit longer, get here a little bit earlier, walk around a little bit.”

Skiing

Kildow wants some recognition

The U.S. women’s ski team had a strong showing at the Alpine Skiing World Championships in Are, Sweden, but it wasn’t covered live on U.S. television.

In lieu of live coverage, NBC, the official broadcaster, aired a 90-minute highlights package Saturday — a day before the 15-day championships ended and offered streaming video on NBC’s Internet site – for a fee.

“To do so well and still not be on TV at home, sometimes I feel like, ‘What do I have to do to gain attention?’” said Lindsey Kildow, who won silver medals in the downhill and super-G.