Cal State Fullerton basketball coach Dedrique Taylor tries to approach every game as just that – a game. Limit the distractions. Spend less time preparing for the other team and more preparing his own. Remind his players that every game starts 0-0 and the baskets are always 10 feet high.

But even Taylor, who will coach his 15th-seeded Titans (21-10) in an NCAA Tournament first-round game against second-seeded Duke (28-6) on Friday in Greenville, South Carolina (4:10 p.m., CBS), admits that this game has a unique dynamic.

“I’m just excited obviously to be here and be participating in what we know as one of the world’s greatest sporting events. I’m anxious to see how our group does,” he said Thursday.

“The shootaround today felt different, and then obviously tomorrow we’replaying – it’s no secret who we’re playing. We’re playing college basketball itself. So, I’m anxious to see this group in that environment and how they handle themselves. We have a very mature, very experienced group, but it’s a different animal on this stage.”

Equating Duke and Coach Mike Krzyzewski as being “college basketball itself” is without question a distraction, given Duke’s history of five national titles (all since 1991) and Coach K himself calling it a career after the 2022 tournament.

“When you speak or think about college basketball, you think aboutCoach K,” Taylor continued. “When you think about success, you think about Coach K. When you think about leadership the way that I think about leadership, you think about Coach K, and he’s synonymous with all three of those things among others.

“Obviously, he has a special place in college basketball. It’s no secret, Duke’s polarizing, but again, you have to have a level of respect, in my opinion, for what they’ve done and how they’ve done it over the course of time. And you can’t do anything but tip your hat and hope like hell you can replicate what they’ve done.”

Taylor has been on college basketball’s radar since he took the Titans to the tourney in 2018, ending an arduous four-year process rebuilding the program from the abyss he inherited. But he is not a novice. He was an assistant at UC Davis, Loyola Marymount, Portland State, Nevada and Arizona State, the last job lasting seven years before he took the job leading the Titans.

He’s coached basketball much the same as Krzyzewski, just at different levels. His message has been as consistent as Duke’s icon, all about communication and work ethic and building a team through good times and bad.

Krzyzewski put it like this at the press conference Thursday.

“It’s about using your enthusiasm (for the tourney game) as shared excitement, and not remember it’s one and done. You can spend too much time on that. The main thing is just to try to be who we’ve been most of the season but at the highest level. Then one game – we look at it as the opportunity tomorrow night, we play a championship game tomorrow – and if we win it, we’ll get an opportunity to play in another one.”

Taylor encouraged his players to take in the atmosphere and enjoy it, especially since this group, which defeated Long Beach State in the Big West Tournament title game last weekend, will only be together this one time.

“Take advantage of each other and leave a legacy because that’s something that is possible, and someone that we will see play out in front of our own eyes,” he said.

“You never rise to the level of the occasion, in my opinion. You sink to the level of your habits. So, I want them to understand who they want to be every single day, every single instance, every single moment. If you can become that, I’ll guarantee you you’ll like the result, and that’s really what we’ve been focused on. I wouldn’t say it’s pressure. I would say just be you. Just do what you do that got us here.”

As much as Taylor and Krzyzewski might share philosophies, they are two distinct teams. Duke has five players expected to be first-round draft picks in the NBA Draft. Fullerton’s top players all arrived on the bounce from other college programs.

But the habits are similar.

“On the defensive end, we just want to play active, cause turnovers, speed them up, play at our pace,” Duke’s Mark Williams said. “Obviously, that will lead into transition to offense. Utilizing that for us and playing together is honestly what it will come down to. Just playing together on both ends of the floor.”

The size difference is an advantage for Duke, but Krzyzewski would have none of that.

“Have you seen E.J. Anosike? I don’t know how much size advantage we have. They’re a good team. Coach Taylor’s done a great job of developinga program there. They’re old and they’re deep. (Damari) Milstead’s had a terrific end of season, and Anosike’s been the leading scorer in their conference and can play either the four or five, and they look like a different team depending on where he’s playing.

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“Yeah, they’re a good basketball team.”

“Duke is an incredible program,” said Milstead, the Titans’ senior point guard. “I think there are some things that we can exploit with our maturity. Duke is a super talented group, but they’re inexperienced. I think our maturity and poise and just our togetherness as a program are some things we can really exploit.”

“We believe in our mission, what we’re trying to accomplish,” said Anosike, the gregarious, high-energy forward. “Five individuals can turn into a fist. When you’re a fist, you can deliver a hard punch. We realize that and went into the conference tournament with that mentality. We’re gonna keep punching and keep fighting. Keep fighting for what we believe in, and we got the job done. And now we’re here.”

Both coaches will have a lot to say about the particulars of the game. But it’s a 100 percent guarantee that Taylor and Krzyzewski will both remind their players that they earned their place in this moment.”

No. 15 CAL STATE FULLERTON VS. No. 2 DUKE

When: Friday, 4:10 p.m.

Where: Bon Secours Wellness Arena, Greenville, S.C.

TV: CBS (Ch. 2)