Cooper Flagg Shines with 30 Points as Duke Defeats Arizona to Reach Elite 8

Cooper Flagg of Duke put on a show Thursday night and led his team to a 100-93 win over Arizona in this year’s NCAA tournament. The victory sent the Blue Devils to the Elite Eight, one victory away from the Final Four. Flagg capped off with 30 points, six rebounds, seven assists and three blocks, an all-encompassing showing that proved too much for Arizona to handle.

Duke head coach Jon Scheyer called Cooper Flagg’s performance one of the best tournament games that he had ever been a party to. The freshman sensation, having recovered completely from an ankle injury that had forced him to sit out earlier in the month, met the moment, preventing Caleb Love from ruining Duke’s season again. It was love, a long-time Duke antagonist who had helped knock the blue devils out of March sadness in the past.

Arizona for his part put up a hefty 35 points — one shy of his career-high. His offensive explosion featured a stretch where he scored 15 straight points in the second half, trimming what had been a 19-point deficit to just five with less than two minutes remaining in regulation. But it was Duke that emerged with a second straight trip to the next round.

The win sets up a much-anticipated Blue Devils matchup with Alabama in the East Region final. The Crimson Tide, earlier in the evening, set a March Madness record with 25 three-pointers in their 113-88 win over BYU. The next game will be a matchup of a top-seeded Duke team and a scorching-hot group from Alabama with an explosive offense.

A victory would send Duke to the Final Four for the 18th time in program history. The last time they advanced to that round was 2022 when, playing for North Carolina, Love scored 28 points to end the legendary coaching career of Mike Krzyzewski. This time, Love’s heroics weren’t enough to save North Carolina, with Flagg’s leading the way to the victory.

Arizona mounted a strong push in the closing minutes, cutting it to five when Carter Bryant conversion from deep with less than two minutes left to play. But Cooper Flagg made three of four free throws down the stretch, and the Blue Devils as a team hit nine of ten to finish the game and clinch the victory. Scheyer stressed his desire for Flagg to relish the moment instead of deferring to others. In response, the freshman played loose, involved and completely in his element.

Arizona’s defense made Cooper Flagg work for every basket, crowding him whenever he had the ball. Still, he never lost his cool, emerging as the best player on the court. The Wildcats left nothing on the court against Duke, but in the end, the Blue Devils had too many weapons.

For Love, this was the close of a remarkable college career. He missed his first three shots of the game, but then he settled in, making 11 of 21 from the field, five of them 3s. He left the game with seven more points than in the 2022 Final Four, when he was instrumental in knocking out Duke.

Arizona’s Jaden Bradley added 15 points to Love’s effort, but it fell short of an upset. The Wildcats were looking to repeat a similar matchup in 2011 when they faced Duke in the tournament and defeated them when they were once again a top seed. This time, the last laugh belonged to the Blue Devils.

Texas Tech edged Arkansas, 85-83, in another thrilling Sweet 16 game. The Red Raiders mounted a fierce comeback after having trailed by 16 points in the second half. It was Darrion Williams who came through big, hitting the winning basket with just 7.3 seconds remaining in overtime. He had just sent the game into overtime with a clutch three-pointer in the closing seconds of regulation.

The comeback was the second-largest in Sweet 16 history. Arkansas had dominated most of the game, ahead for almost 39 minutes, while Texas Tech had been up for just over three. The Red Raiders advanced into the West Region final, where they will meet top-seeded Florida with an opportunity to reach their second career Final Four.

For the majority of the game, it appeared Texas Tech had no chance of winning. Arkansas had established a 10-point lead early and appeared destined to run. A layup by Johnell Davis with less than five minutes left pushed the Razorbacks to 13 points ahead. But the Red Raiders weren’t going to let up. Christian Anderson hit three big three-pointers and Williams had several big baskets in the final minutes. His most momentous shot came with 9.7 seconds remaining in regulation, when he drilled a long three to knot the game. Arkansas had an opportunity to win in regulation but Jonas Aidoo missed a key free throw and Texas Tech forced overtime.

In overtime, JT Toppin put the Red Raiders in front for the first time since early in the game. The teams exchanged baskets until D.J. Wagner, a leading candidate for next year’s N.B.A. draft, knotted up the score for Arkansas with 34 seconds left. That paved the way for Williams, who powered his way inside for the game-winning bucket. Arkansas got one last chance, but Wagner’s buzzer-beater hit the front rim, and Texas Tech erupted in celebration at midcourt.

There was only disappointment on the face of John Calipari, as the coach walked off the court as his team squandered a huge lead. The defeat sealed a long, heartening season at Arkansas with an unthinkable loss and also stood as an undoing for Anderson as he sought to become the first coach to take four different programs to the Elite Eight. The 16-point blown lead was the largest in any N.C.A.A. tournament game by a Calipari team.

Anderson scored 22 points for Texas Tech, and Toppin and Williams scored 20 apiece. On the Arkansas side, Davis had 30 points, while Karter Knox had 20. The Red Raiders reached the victory without key shooter Chance McMillian, who sat out his fourth consecutive game because of an oblique injury. The defeat was particularly painful for Arkansas, which had just gotten Adou Thiero back from a knee injury that had sidelined him since late February. But Thiero only logged five minutes and was unable to have a significant effect.

Texas Tech will now gear up for a difficult showdown against Florida, and Duke, meanwhile, will turn its attention to a clash with Alabama. The tournament action keeps rolling, as both of these teams look to punch their ticket to the Final Four.