Cooper Flagg probably wasn’t envisioning this as the end of his Duke career. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
(Jamie Squire via Getty Images)
There is absolutely no defending a team that scored only one field goal in the final 10 minutes of a Final Four game, but Duke has at least one excuse for its all-time meltdown Saturday against Houston.
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The game hinged on one play with 20 seconds left in the game. By that point, Houston had whittled what was once a 14-point deficit down to one, but Duke had the ball and ended up with junior Tyrese Proctor at the line. Two made free throws and the Cougars would need a 3-pointer just to force overtime.
Proctor missed the front end of the one-and-one, and then it got worse. On the rebound, Blue Devils superstar Cooper Flagg got called for a foul, immediately sending J’Wan Roberts to the line because Houston was in the bonus. Roberts made both to give his team the lead for the first time since the 14:42 mark of the first half.
However, upon further review, it’s … hard to see where Flagg actually committed the foul. Roberts was so focused on boxing him out that he didn’t put a hand up for the rebound, and Flagg didn’t seem to make additional contact while reaching for the ball.
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The CBS broadcasters did not like the call.
In defense of the refs, seeing a player reach over the guy in front of him on a rebound is usually an auto-whistle. This was just a situation in which that reflex had very large consequences.
Houston went on to get another stop on a missed jumper by Flagg with eight seconds left, with L.J. Cryer making both free throws with three seconds left to put the finishing touches on a win that will be remembered by Duke critics for years to come.
The foul and missed shot are a rocky ending for Flagg’s brilliant college career. The freshman, who would still be playing in high school right now had he not reclassified, swept the major national player of the year awards and is the overwhelming favorite to go first overall in the 2025 NBA Draft.
