Kyrie Irving Will Play For Duke In NCAA Tournament, Coach Krzyzewski Confirms

For a time, the notion of Duke's Kyrie Irving suiting up for the NCAA Tournament, especially in the early rounds, seemed like wishful thinking. On Thursday, however, coach Mike Krzyzewski has confirmed an earlier report that the freshman standout will see some action against Hampton on Friday. From The Sporting News' Matt Crossman:

An earlier report stated that Irving is unlikely to play more than 15 or 20 minutes against Hampton, the Blue Devils' 16-seed opponent. Irving, who turns 19 on March 23, hasn't played since Dec. 4 against Butler. He's only appeared in eight games in his brief college career. In his best game against Michigan State, he scored 31 points -- in large part thanks to 13-for-16 shooting from the free throw line -- and added six rebounds and four assists.