An Alabama team boasting the nation’s highest-scoring offense was supposed to present a challenge for Duke.
It did not. Duke’s defense handcuffed Alabama’s high-octane attack while its own offense put on another clinic in an 85-65 win Saturday night in the East regional final. With the win, Duke advances to its first Final Four since 2022.
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Armed with Player of the Year candidate Cooper Flagg and arguably the best supporting cast in the nation, Duke will be the favorite in San Antonio to cut down the nets.
The Blue Devils demonstrated why on Saturday with an overwhelming effort on both sides of the floor. It did so despite an off game on offense from Flagg. The Blue Devils simply leaned on that supporting cast that would add up to a title contender with or without its freshman phenom.
Cooper Flagg and Duke are Final Four bound. (Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images)
(IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect / Reuters)
Duke established the tone with three early 3-pointers en route to a 13-5 lead. It extended its lead to 35-22 and threatened to run away with the game before Alabama responded to cut its deficit to 46-37 by halftime.
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But Alabama never threatened to overtake. It cut the Duke lead to 65-58, but got no closer than seven points after halftime. A 13-0 run extended Duke’s lead to 78-58 and put to bed any long-shot hopes of an Alabama comeback in the game’s final minutes.
While Duke’s offense found success inside and out, Alabama’s struggled to find the open looks from deep that it used just one game earlier to set the NCAA tournament record for made 3s with 25 against BYU the Sweet 16.
Instead, Alabama repeatedly hoisted contested looks from 3 or settled for inefficient mid-range jumpers that stood little chance of keeping pace. Good looks in the paint were also hard to come by. Duke’s lineup that’s the tallest in the nation by average height simply presented too many challenges. It added up to a 35.4% shooting rate from the field and 8-of-32 effort (25%) from 3-point distance by Alabama.
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All-America guard Mark Sears, who hit 10 3-pointers in Alabama’s record-setting night against BYU, finished Saturday with six points and six assists. He shot 2 of 12 from the field and 1 of 5 from deep in his final college game.
Duke’s offense, meanwhile, was a model of efficiency, even with Flagg’s relative struggles. Alabama zeroed in on the freshman phenom, limiting Flagg to a 6-of-16 effort from the field. No problem for Duke, which ran much of its offense through fellow freshman star and projected NBA lottery pick Kon Knueppel.
When he wasn’t finding good looks from 3 (2 for 4), Knueppel used dribble penetration to score layups or set up a teammate with a lob at the rim.
Knueppel finished the night with 21 points, five rebounds, five assists and three steals.
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Flagg, while struggling from the field, was far from a non-factor. He finished with 16 points, nine rebounds, three assists and one block and was a force on defense alongside his teammates. Flagg won’t have many off shooting nights. But even when he does, he impacts the game in so many other ways.
Duke finished the night shooting 53.6% from the field and made the most of its selective 3-point attempts in a 6-for-13 (46.2%) night from long distance. Four Duke starters scored 14 or more points.
Junior guard Tyrese Proctor extended his outstanding NCAA tournament run with 17 points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals while shooting 7 of 10 from the field and 2 of 5 from 3. Freshman center Khaman Maluach, who’s projected as a lottery pick alongside Flagg and Knueppel, finished with 14 points, nine rebounds and two blocks.
It added up to another dominant Duke effort in an NCAA tournament that’s now full of them. Duke beat Mount Saint Mary’s by 44 in Round 1 and a good Baylor team by 23 in round 2. Arizona’s so far the only team to mount a semblance of a challenge in Duke’s 100-93 win in the Sweet 16.
Up next for Duke will be the winner between No. 1 seed Houston and No. 2 seed Tennessee in Sunday’s Midwest regional final. Either way, Duke will take on one of the nation’s best defenses in the Final Four. Will either be able to muster a challenge to the Blue Devils?
