By Geoffrey Latayan
Duke Blue Devils guard-forward Cooper Flagg’s 2025 NCAA Tournament campaign might be in doubt after rolling his ankle on Thursday against Georgia Tech in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament.
Blue Devils coach Jon Scheyer said Flagg, the prospective top pick in the 2025 NBA draft, has sustained a severe sprain that will sideline him in the ACC championship clash against Louisville on Saturday night.
“He’s [Flagg] doing better,” Scheyer said (per ESPN).
“All the imaging came back negative, but he sprained it pretty good. It’s a good sprain. I’m not breaking any news. He’s not going to play [on Saturday].”
Fortunately for Duke, the first round of the NCAA Tournament is on March 20-21 and the Blue Devils coach is optimistic that the No. 1-ranked freshman in the Class of 2024 will be fit to play in the tournament opener.
“Our goal is to have him ready for the tournament,” Scheyer said.
“But we need to see how this weekend goes with the swelling and what he can do.”
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Duke’s top player this season
Flagg was absent in the semifinal of the ACC Tournament semifinal game against North Carolina on Friday where Duke won 74-71.
The 18-year-old has been one of the major contributors in Duke’s 2024-25 college basketball campaign.
In 32 games, the Montverde Academy standout has averaged 18.9 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.3 blocks per game.
Flag has also shot 48.8% from the field, including 36.8% from the 3-point line, and made 83.0% from free throws.
How Duke performed without Flagg
With Flagg sidelined, Duke seldom used Patrick Ngongba II and Isaiah Evans to fill in during the rivalry game against North Carolina.
The pair combined for 14 points, five rebounds, four assists, two steals and one block.
Freshman Kon Knueppel was the top scorer for the Blue Devils with 17 points while 7-foot-2 Khaman Maluach added 13 points.
Sion James and Tyrese Proctor managed 12 and 11 points, respectively, for Duke, who will face a Louisville team that outclassed Clemson, 76-73, in the other semi-final duel.
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Duke’s championship aspirations
The Duke Blue Devils are attempting to win their sixth NCAA men’s basketball title and their first since 2015 under legendary coach Mike Krzyzewski.
Duke is currently 30-3 this season and won the ACC regular season title after finishing with a conference-best 19-1 record.
As the No. 1 seed in this week’s AP poll, the Blue Devils will look to push forward with or without Flagg in the upcoming NCAA Tournament.
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