Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski Says Zion Williamson Suffered Mild Knee Sprain vs. UNC

Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said he was "very concerned" for Williamson.

Duke freshman sensation Zion Williamson suffered a mild knee sprain in the first half against North Carolina on Wednesday, coach Mike Krzyzewski said after the game.

Just 33 seconds into the contest, Williamson ripped through his shoe and winced in pain while grabbing the back of his leg. The 6'7", 275-pound forward left for the locker room immediately afterward and did not return.

"We’re very concerned about Zion," Krzyzewski said. "It’s a mild knee sprain. We will know about length of time tomorrow but it's stable so that's good, but obviously it changes the game. We were knocked back a bit but we fought like crazy."

No. 1 Duke suffered a 88–72 loss to No. 8 UNC in Williamson's absence. The loss dropped the Blue Devils to 23–3 on the season. North Carolina improved to 21–5.

"They're an outstanding team," Krzyzewski said. "They played with poise. We didn't always play well tonight, but we played hard. We will learn from this and move on."

Duke next plays Syracuse in a rematch on Saturday at 6 p.m. ET.