Flagg, Duke Advance To Elite 8 After Win Versus Arizona
NEWARK, N.J. – The freshman duo of Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel helped lead No. 1-seed Duke into the Elite Eight, as the Blue Devils (34-3) defeated Arizona (24-13), 100-93, on Thursday, March 27, at the Prudential Center.
Flagg scored 30 points and Knueppel added 20 to pace the top-seeded Blue Devils in the Sweet 16 matchup, while Sion James and Khaman Maluach also reached double-figures, scoring 16 and 13, respectively.
Flagg added a game-high seven assists and shared the team lead for rebounds (six) with his classmate Maluach. Flagg also blocked three shots, becoming the first player in NCAA Tournament history with 30 points, six rebounds, seven assists and three blocks in a game.
As a team, Duke finished 33-of-55 (.600) from the field, 11-of-19 (.579) from beyond the arc and 23-of-27 (.852) from the free throw line – the second consecutive game with 60-50-80 shooting splits, marking the first time in Duke program history to accomplish the feat in back-to-back games.
Duke improved its NCAA Tournament record to 125-41 (.753) all-time, marking the best winning percentage in tournament history by a team with a minimum of 20 games played.
“A ton of respect for Tommy Lloyd, his team, Arizona, their program. I thought they were incredible tonight. I thought our guys made some big-time winning plays. A lot of game pressure. They just wouldn’t go away, even with a 19-point lead. No lead really felt safe with them. I thought our guys hit some clutch free throws, made just enough plays. Obviously, it was hard to get stops for anything in this game, but obviously that’s sometimes how it goes. I couldn’t be more proud. Hats off to Arizona for the job they did, and proud to be moving on. It’s a quick turnaround, obviously, so our focus tonight for us is go straight to the preparation. But we’re going to enjoy this one, never take for granted going to an Elite 8. That’s a special thing.” – Duke head coach Jon Scheyer
Duke will face Alabama on Saturday night, time is still TBA.