Coach K criticizes NCAA's pandemic plan: 'We're just plowing through this'

Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski had some pointed comments Tuesday night about continuing the NCAA basketball season during the coronavirus pandemic.

"I'm not sure who leads college basketball," Krzyzewski told reporters after Duke's 15-point loss to Illinois. "It's done by committee ... and anything that's led by committee is not agile in handling a situation."

As of Wednesday, four other ACC programs canceled games this week due to COVID-19 protocols. Krzyzewski stopped short of calling for a halt to the season but urged the NCAA to reassess the situation.

"It was more of a mentality of, get as many games in as possible," the Hall of Fame coach said. "I would just like for the safety, the mental and physical health of our players and staff to assess where we're at."

Krzyzewski said the health protocols in place wouldn't allow many student-athletes to return home for the holidays, and he feared what may be coming with U.S. infection rates ramping up.

"People are saying the next six weeks are going to be the worst," he said. "To me, it's already pretty bad. On the other side of it, there are these vaccines that are coming out. People say by the end of the month, 20 million vaccine shots will be given ... By the end of January or in February, another 100 million. Should we not reassess that?

"We're just plowing through this," he added. "I know the NCAA is worried about the end game. They're not as worried about the game we're playing right now."