Let's take a look at the material the legendary Coach K, already an enshrined Hall of Famer, had on hand Thursday night.

In addition to Redick, he had five other former McDonald's all-Americans, primo recruits any team in the country would love to have had.

There was Josh McRoberts, the McDonald's high school Player of the Year in 2005. There was Greg Paulus, honored by Gatorade as the national Athlete of the Year in 2005 because he also was highly-recruited as a quarterback. Sophomore DeMarcus Nelson is the all-time leading scorer in California high school history. Sean Dockery and Eric Boateng also were McDonald's all-Americans.

In addition, the Dookies could call on freshman Jamal Boykin, who was the Gatorade Player of the Year last season in California, and senior center Shelden Williams, who twice was Gatorade Player of the Year in Oklahoma as a schoolboy.

Against that array of top-notch talent from all across the country, LSU had three kids from Baton Rouge -- sophomore Glen Davis, redshirt freshman Tyrus Thomas, and Temple, who tenaciously followed Redick wherever he went.

Duke had all that talent, and Krzyzewski has all those Coach of the Year awards, and yet the Blue Devils were stymied and flummoxed, left frustrated and clueless -- how'd you like it when Davis, after missing a foul shot late in the game, was able to grab the rebound, even though there were four Dookies in the lane, and he was the only LSU player on that side of midcourt? -- by the Bayou Bengals.

This will be heresy to some, and lunacy to others, but it could it possibly be that Coach K is getting by on his reputation?

Yes, he's won three NCAA championships, but just one in the last 14 years -- an inability to finish that might have gotten the legendary John Wooden fired at UCLA.

Another indication of a coach's prowess is how his protégés are doing. Consider the following disciples of Coach K: Tommy Amaker has been unable to restore Michigan to hoops glory. Or even the NCAA tournament. At Notre Dame, Mike Brey is looking more and more like Ty Willingham, a nice man who can't get the job done. Dave Henderson just got fired at Delaware -- Delaware? -- with two years remaining on his contract after his third straight losing season. And Quinn Snyder was fired at Missouri amidst questions of unethical activities.

Similar to all those televised sales pitches featuring coach K, the Dookies try to sell their program as the nation's best -- that Redick is the best player in the country, and Krzyzewski is the best coach in the country.

But I'm not buying it.

The incident has cast an unflattering light on a university that has a track record for success and integrity in athletics rivaled only by its highly regarded academics.