Tag: Cooper Flagg

The best Duke basketball photos from Friday’s victory over the Arizona Wildcats

Check out the best photos from the Duke basketball victory over Arizona on Friday night.

The Duke Blue Devils walked out of McKale Memorial Center with a 69-55 victory over the No. 17 Arizona Wildcats on Friday night, their first top-25 win of the season.

[autotag]Cooper Flagg[/autotag] continued his impressive freshman season with 24 points, including 16 in the second half. The 6-foot-9 freshman phenom added six rebounds, three assists, two blocks, and a steal to his final tally, and he once again took over the game for Duke in the second half. From 12:31 to 5:20 left in the game, Flagg scored all 10 of the team’s points to fend off an Arizona comeback attempt.

Fellow five-star freshman [autotag]Kon Knueppel[/autotag] made three 3-pointers in the second half to end with 13, but Blue Devils fans probably drew the most satisfaction from the struggles of one Arizona star. Caleb Love, a former North Carolina Tar Heels star who beat Duke five times in his first eight career meetings, ended with eight points after he missed eight of his nine 3-point attempts in the loss.

Here are the best photos from Friday’s victory in the desert.

How many points did Cooper Flagg score against Arizona?

Here’s how Duke freshman phenom Cooper Flagg performed against the Arizona Wildcats on Friday.

[autotag]Cooper Flagg[/autotag] and the Duke Blue Devils won their last game before Friday’s battle with the Arizona Wildcats, but it still felt like they needed a bounce-back win.

Despite Flagg’s 26 points against the Kentucky Wildcats last Tuesday, the Blue Devils lost for the first time in 2024-25 after being outscored 24-11 over the final 10 minutes. A Saturday win over Wofford (that actually set a school record for the fewest points allowed in the shot clock era) likely numbed the pain a little, but until Duke beat a proper ranked opponent, the questions about that game in Atlanta would linger.

Luckily, head coach [autotag]Jon Scheyer[/autotag] made sure the school scheduled plenty of top teams in the non-conference slate. Three of the team’s following four games sit within the top 25 of the USA TODAY Sports men’s basketball coaches poll, including Friday’s road game against the Arizona Wildcats.

Did Flagg and his teammates find a way to bounce back? Here’s a quick recap.

Cooper Flagg points scored vs. Arizona:

Flagg finished with 24 points against the Wildcats, 16 of which came after halftime. He made 10 of his 22 shots for the game, including two of his five 3-point looks, and pulled down six rebounds. He added three assists, two blocks, and a steal to his final line.

Did Duke win?

The Blue Devils added their first top-25 win of the season to their resume with a 69-55 victory over Arizona. Caleb Love, a former North Carolina Tar Heels star who won five of his previous eight matchups with Duke, only managed eight points after missing eight of his nine 3-point tries.

Cooper Flagg’s next game:

The Duke Blue Devils will return to the court on Tuesday night against the No. 1 Kansas Jayhawks, a neutral-site game in Las Vegas.

Duke basketball defeats Caleb Love and Arizona thanks to Cooper Flagg’s 24 points

Cooper Flagg and the Duke Blue Devils picked up their first top-25 victory on Friday night with a 69-55 win over Arizona in Tucson.

The Duke Blue Devils avenged last season’s loss to Arizona on Friday night, defeating the Wildcats 69-55 in their own building behind a 24-point performance from star freshman [autotag]Cooper Flagg[/autotag].

Arizona entered Friday night as one of the nation’s best rebounding teams, averaging 51.3 per game while giving up just 27.0, but the Blue Devils used their height to revert that trend in a big way. Every single member of the Duke rotation stands at least 6-foot-5, and forwards like Flagg, [autotag]Khaman Maluach[/autotag], and Maliq Brown helped create an early advantage on the board.

The Blue Devils finished with 22 rebounds in the opening half while Arizona pulled down just 14. Despite the Wildcats recovering more than half of their misses for second-chance possessions in the first three games, they only grabbed one offensive rebound while shooting 11/26 (42.3%) from the floor.

Brown and Tulane transfer Sion James each finished the half with five boards, and three other Duke players snagged at least two. Duke ended the game with a 43-30 advantage on the glass, and the Blue Devils scored 14 second-chance points to Arizona’s eight.

One of Duke’s other big trends from last week’s loss to the Kentucky Wildcats stemmed from its 3-point shooting. Despite making more than 41% of their triples against their other three opponents, the Blue Devils went 4/24 (16.7%) in Atlanta during the five-point loss.

Tyrese Proctor buried two straight triples in the opening four minutes, and the rest of the team woke up over the closing stretch. The Blue Devils made five of their 13 second-half attempts from distance, including a trio from freshman [autotag]Kon Knueppel[/autotag], to finish the game at 38.5%.

After a slow start, the Wisconsin native looked like the ACC Rookie of the Week from the first two games after the break. The biggest of his three 3-pointers came with 3:56 on the clock when he hesitated for a moment before splashing a shot from a few feet behind the line, a dagger that turned the game into a 61-49 contest in Duke’s favor.

Flagg’s offensive dominance, however, was a trend that didn’t reverse from the Kentucky loss. After scoring 12 of Duke’s last 14 points against the Wildcats, the 17-year-old rattled off another long stretch as the engine on Friday. Flagg made a layup with 12:31 left on the clock to kick off a seven-minute stretch in which he scored all 10 of the team’s points, including a knockdown 3-pointer at the 8:20 mark.

Flagg scored 16 of his 24 points after halftime. Oh, and former North Carolina Tar Heels star Caleb Love? He made just three of his 13 shots, including one of his nine 3-point attempts, to finish with eight points.

Duke won’t get to bask in its first ranked win of the season for long. The Blue Devils head to Las Vegas for a Tuesday battle with the No. 1 Kansas Jayhawks.

Duke basketball game against Arizona on Friday night officially sold out

The Arizona Wildcats announced their Friday night game against Duke basketball is sold out.

The Duke Blue Devils will play Arizona in the Wildcats’ home stadium on Friday night, and they’ll take the court at McKale Memorial Center in front of a packed crowd.

According to a photo from the Blue Devils official team account on Friday afternoon, the Wildcats declared the game sold out nine full hours before tipoff.

Both teams hope to come back from a loss in their most recent game against prominent opponents. Arizona lost a 103-88 game to the Wisconsin Badgers last week after John Tonje scored 41 points, making four of his six 3-point attempts and 21 of his 22 free throws.

Duke, on the other hand, gave up a nine-point halftime lead against the Kentucky Wildcats in Atlanta last Tuesday. Superstar freshman [autotag]Cooper Flagg[/autotag], still just 17 years old, scored 12 of the team’s last 14 points to finish with a game-high 26, but two turnovers on the last two possessions set up the winning free throws on the other end.

The Blue Devils will also face former North Carolina Tar Heels star Caleb Love for the ninth time. Love, who transferred to Arizona ahead of the 2023-24 season, most notably scored 28 points when UNC beat the Blue Devils in the Final Four three seasons ago, ending legendary coach [autotag]Mike Krzyzewski[/autotag]’s career. He’s won five of the previous eight battles with Duke, averaging 16.9 points, 4.3 assists, 3.3 rebounds, and 0.8 steals in those contests.

Cameron Boozer, 2025 Duke basketball commits officially sign with the Blue Devils

Duke officially inked its third number-one recruiting class of the Scheyer era with four signees, including star forward Cameron Boozer.

The Duke basketball program has relocated to Arizona for Friday’s massive matchup with the Wildcats. While all the focus centers on how the Blue Devils will conquer their first top-25 opponent of this young season, head coach [autotag]Jon Scheyer[/autotag] and the rest of this program’s staff will silently be able to let out a sigh of relief.

The early signing period has come, meaning commits from the class of 2025 are now eligible to sign their national letter of intent and officially pledge themselves to their schools for next year.

Duke inked four top prospects on Thursday, and the Blue Devils’ social media posted graphics and videos highlighting the signings of the Boozer twins, Shelton Henderson and Nikolas Khamenia.

Duke didn’t have a single commitment at the start of last month, but Cameron and Cayden Boozer, sons of Duke legend Carlos Boozer, got things rolling by hopping in the boat on October 11. In many ways, they were the biggest domino for Duke’s 2025 recruiting cycle as the Blue Devils would see their other two commitments come on board shortly after that in the following weeks.

Cameron, the nation’s second-ranked player in the 247Sports rankings, is often labeled the most complete high school player regardless of class. He will fit right into the shoes of Cooper Flagg, Zion Williamson, Paolo Banchero, and Jayson Tatum as an “alpha” freshman for Duke to essentially play around next year.

Cayden Boozer is a talented guard in his own right, but he’s less heralded than his twin brother. Cayden is a point guard, a position Duke will have its eye on all offseason, especially if Duke loses the services of Caleb Foster and Tyrese Proctor at the end of this season. Many believe Cayden could be a multi-year point guard like Tre Jones.

Shelton Henderson, another five-star player, is a high-ceiling wing who best projects as a two-way star. He can slash his way to the hoop and create for himself and others. Henderson is an excellent positional rebounder, and his defense is incredible. He’s also physically mature, and he uses his size well. The best way to describe Henderson is a higher-ceiling version of Sion James in every way.

Lastly, four-star combo forward Nikolas Khamenia officially joins the Blue Devils. He committed less than two weeks after the Boozers did, making him the third member of the class. Khamenia excels playing inside out and has an incredibly high basketball IQ, which allows him to be an elite distributor and playmaker from the wing. He is a perfect connective player because he also shoots the ball well. He can slot in several ways for Jon Scheyer next year, making creating lineups and matchups much easier.

Duke’s class is set to be the top class in the nation for the third time in the Scheyer era. The Blue Devils also paced the 2022 and 2024 recruiting rankings.

Duke isn’t finished, either. There is a real chance that Duke will add one more player to this class in the form of Nate Ament, 247Sports’ No. 4 overall prospect. Ament is another high-ceiling player who stands 6-foot-9 and can handle the ball and shoot at a tremendously high level. His best days of basketball are well in front of him.

Ament will decide after the season and will likely let the process play out until the high school all-star game circuit before committing.

Staff predictions for Friday’s matchup between Duke basketball and Arizona

Duke basketball is gearing up to take on Arizona this Friday. Check out our Duke Wire staff predictions for the game.

Duke basketball fans probably felt (understandably) disheartened after Tuesday’s loss to the Kentucky Wildcats.

With phenom [autotag]Cooper Flagg[/autotag] and three other five-star freshmen arriving on campus, the Cameron Crazies had visions of a dominant season that ended with a banner. However, first-year Kentucky coach Mark Pope and his team outscored the Blue Devils 24-11 over the closing stretch for a 77-72 win in the team’s first ranked test on the schedule.

However, the hard truth is that national analysts and fans won’t remember that game by March. The team might not even remember it by the end of the regular season. There’s no faster way to shorten everyone’s memories than with another top-25 win, and the Blue Devils get two chances at one of those in the next week.

First up, a road trip to Tucson for a revenge battle against No. 17 Arizona. The Wildcats, now anchored by former North Carolina Tar Heels star Caleb Love, left Durham with a win last November, and head coach [autotag]Jon Scheyer[/autotag] now hopes to return the favor. Here are our staff predictions for Friday’s showdown.

Ryan Haley, Duke Wire site editor

The most important aspect of this game has been pretty overlooked so far this week: this isn’t the same Arizona team that beat Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Oumar Ballo and Kylan Boswell both transferred, and Keshad Johnson and Pelle Larsson now play professionally. Even with former Tennessee Volunteer Tobe Awaka and some returners stepping forward, that production and leadership will take time to rebuild.

The Blue Devils won’t just get this game handed to them, however. Someone other than Flagg needs to step up down the stretch. The 17-year-old scored 12 of Duke’s last 14 points against Kentucky, and an offensive plan that entirely revolves around him playing hero ball won’t work against the best teams ahead.

With that said, however, I firmly believe Duke’s pathetic 4/24 3-point showing against the Wildcats was a blue-moon event. If the Blue Devils put together even a slightly-below-average game, they’d be undefeated, and that gets rectified in Tucson.

Duke 79, Arizona 61

Bryant Crews, Staff Writer

Scheyer and the Duke Blue Devils hit the road for their first true road game of the 2024-25 season, and as every college basketball watcher knows, those games are always challenging. Pit two top-25 teams against each other and toss in that revenge is on the mind for one with Love, a legendary Duke villain, potentially lacing up his kicks for the last time against a school he has terrorized, and you have a marquee matchup.

These are two gifted teams with talent on both sides. Scheyer scheduled games like these to test and push his squad so that come March and April; the Blue Devils could be ready for a run for the national title. Even though this isn’t a neutral site game, it already has a second weekend of the NCAA Tournament-type feel in November.

Duke is the better team, in my opinion, and still has a substantial amount of room to go. If this were a neutral site, people would be less inclined to think Arizona wins, but Duke’s depth and high-end talent tip the scales even without home-court advantage.

Caleb Foster has to show up, and if Kon Knueppel hits even 25% more shots than he did against Kentucky, Duke should do this by multiple possessions. I don’t see Arizona containing Duke from deep for another 4/24 performance like Atlanta. While Arizona will try to bully the youngster Khaman Maluach inside with older post players, Maluach holds his ground and has three blocks while pulling down at least eight boards.

Sion James and Mason Gillis combined for four made threes off the bench as the Blue Devils roll.

Duke 78, Arizona 71

Josiah Caswell, Staff Writer

Duke’s 2024-25 season has started off strong, but not without blemishes. Despite three blowout victories over weaker competition, the Blue Devils fell short in their matchup with Kentucky.

The Wildcats’ high-percentage performance played a big reason in that loss. Additionally, Flagg struggled in the final seconds despite an overall good game.

Now, Duke goes on the road for the first time against the Wildcats and Love just one year after they took down the Blue Devils in Durham.

Arizona is in a similar spot to Duke, though. Following two massive blowout victories over lesser competition, Arizona fell 103-88 to the Wisconsin Badgers. Love, notably, went 2/13 from the field and 0/6 from behind the arc.

If Arizona is to bounce back and take down Duke, they’ll need to up their 3-point percentage and improve their defense. If the Wildcats let someone on Duke put up 40 points, they certainly won’t be winning.

Duke 86, Arizona 77

Duke basketball no longer a No. 1 seed in ESPN Bracketology after Kentucky loss

After the Duke Blue Devils lost for the first time last week, ESPN’s Joe Lunardi dropped them down to a No. 3 seed in his projected bracket.

There are a lot of important basketball games between now and March, especially the two coming within the next week, but the Duke Blue Devils lost their grip on a No. 1 seed in the ESPN NCAA Bracketology on Tuesday.

Longtime bracket expert Joe Lunardi knocked Duke down to the No. 3 in the South region after its loss to the Kentucky Wildcats, slotting them behind the Auburn Tigers and Iowa State Cyclones.

The Blue Devils could shake up the order themselves over the next seven days. Duke plays Arizona, whom Lunardi slotted in as a No. 4 seed, on the road this Friday before a neutral-site game against top overall seed Kansas. One or two wins between those two games could make the Kentucky loss less consequential.

Connecticut and Gonzaga filled in the remaining two No. 1 spots. The Wildcats joined Duke on the No. 3 seed line, and the North Carolina Tar Heels fell down to a No. 4 seed after their loss to the Jayhawks.

Andrew Carr named SEC Player Of The Week after their Duke win

Kentucky basketball forward Andrew Carr was named SEC Player of the Week.

Following a stellar effort last week, Kentucky basketball forward Andrew Carr has been rewarded.

Carr was named SEC Player of the week following a strong performance in Kentucky’s 77-72 win over Duke on November 13.

The Wildcat forward scored a season high 17 points in the win — which was Kentucky’s only matchup of the week. He also chipped in six rebounds, three assists, and a block against the Blue Devils.

Carr also proved to be crucial defensively, guarding Duke phenom Cooper Flagg towards the end of the matchup.

Related: Five things learned in the win over Duke

Tied at 72 with 26 seconds left in the game, Carr forced Flagg — who was driving inside — to his left. Wildcat guard Otega Oweh stole the ball, forcing a Duke foul and free throws that eventually won the game.

With the accolade, Carr becomes the first SEC Player of the week of the Mark Pope era. It’s his second career player of the week honor, as he also earned one at Wake Forrest in January of 2023.

The Wake Forrest transfer has been crucial in Pope’s first year — averaging 13 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2 assists per game. The forward has also been incredibly efficient through the Wildcats’ first three games, shooting 68.4% from the field and 60% flat from three.

Carr spent his first two years at Delaware, where he became a regular starter in his second season. In 2022, the forward transferred to Wake Forrest — playing two years with the Demon Deacons before heading to Pope’s first-year Kentucky program.

Duke basketball star Cooper Flagg named ACC Rookie of the Week after 26-point game

Duke basketball picked up its second straight ACC Rookie of the Week award on Monday, this time given to superstar forward Cooper Flagg.

Duke basketball picked up a second straight ACC Rookie of the Week nomination when [autotag]Cooper Flagg[/autotag] picked up the award on Monday.

Flagg drew some scrutiny after two late turnovers in Tuesday’s loss to the Kentucky Wildcats, but he was the only Blue Devil to make a shot from the floor over the final 10 minutes in the 77-72 defeat. He finished that game with 26 points, his highest total so far this season, and 11 rebounds for his second straight double-double.

While Flagg only tallied eight points during Saturday’s blowout win over Wofford, he also racked up nine rebounds, six assists, three steals, and two blocks against the Terriers.

Through his first four games, Flagg is averaging 16.3 points. 9.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 2.0 steals, and 1.8 blocks.

[autotag]Kon Knueppel[/autotag], another member of the vaunted 2024 recruiting class, picked up the award after the first two games of the season. The Wisconsin native, one of four five-star freshmen on the roster, led the Blue Devils in scoring after he put together 22 points in the opener against Maine and 15 points against Army.

Duke basketball drops from the top 10 of the AP Poll after Kentucky loss

Despite their big win over Wofford this weekend, the Duke Blue Devils couldn’t stay in the top 10 of the AP Poll on Monday.

The Associated Press revealed the updated men’s basketball AP Poll on Monday, and the Duke Blue Devils slipped down to 12th after their Tuesday loss to the Kentucky Wildcats.

Superstar freshman Cooper Flagg scored 26 points in the loss, but two costly turnovers on the final two possessions helped the Wildcats erase a nine-point halftime deficit. Kentucky, now led by first-year head coach Mark Pope, vaulted up 10 spots to No. 9 thanks to the win.

Duke’s tumble also meant that the North Carolina Tar Heels emerged as the highest-ranked ACC team. UNC lost one of its first three games as well, but the 92-89 road loss to top-ranked Kansas kept the Tar Heels at No. 10.

The Jayhawks, whom Duke plays on Tuesday in Las Vegas, remain firmly in front of the rankings. Kansas received 49 out of a possible 61 first-place votes, keeping them above the Connecticut Huskies, Gonzaga Bulldogs, Auburn Tigers, and Iowa State Cyclones in the top five.

Duke’s next opponent, the Arizona Wildcats, dropped eight spots to 17th after a loss to the Wisconsin Badgers.