Duke basketball suffered a shocking 70-67 loss against Houston basketball in their Final Four matchup on Saturday night, eliminating the presumed favorite to win it all from the tournament. Star forward Cooper Flagg had a chance to give Duke the lead with mere seconds left in the game, but he ended up missing the shot, leading to a staunch reaction after the game.
As has been the case for much of the season, Flagg was the leader on offense for Duke in this one, as he scored a game-high 27 points on 8/19 shooting while also adding seven rebounds, four assists, three blocks, and two steals. It was the shot he missed at the end, though, that everyone will remember, and it’s a play that Flagg said he had no problem with, even if the result ended up not going his way.
“It’s the play Coach drew up,” Flagg said after the game. “Took it into the paint. Thought I got my feet set, rose up. Left it short, obviously. A shot I’m willing to live with in the scenario.”
Cooper Flagg, Duke basketball crash out of March Madness
After coasting through their first four games of the 2025 NCAA Tournament, Duke was the heavy favorite to prevail as the champion among the four remaining teams. For much of this game, they were in control over Houston, but they completely faltered down the stretch, throwing away a 14-point lead that they held with just under 12 minutes left in the game.
Flagg did everything he could to lead his team to victory, but he ended up missing the most important shot of the game, and Duke has bowed out of the tournament as a result. Now, all eyes will turn to Flagg’s future, as he’s expected to declare for the 2025 NBA draft and be the No. 1 overall pick when all is said and done.
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