Duke Dropped Semifinal Match Against Houston in NCAA Final Four – Duke was exactly where it had hoped to be all season: leading by double digits at halftime of the Final Four, drawing near the opportunity to compete for a second consecutive national championship.
What followed was horrific, memorable history.
Even though they were up 14 with 8 and a half minutes remaining, the Blue Devils surprisingly lost steam in the final minutes due to Houston’s dogged will to avoid a loss that had looked like it was about to slip away on multiple occasions. Both shots were either missed or miscued. Cannot obtain stops. Cooper Flagg, the Blue Devils’ dependable standout and the Associate Press’s national performer of the year, was unable to save them from a late disadvantage, even on a contentious shot.
On Saturday in the subsequent semifinal, the Cougars scored nine points during the final 33 seconds to win 70-67. The final horn sounded at the end of the game.
“It’s devastating, it’s very disheartening,” third-year coach Scheyer vented. “This is going to cause you a lot of suffering. To put it simply, that is the point of the competition.
A roar that could only be described as euphoria crashing into disbelief ran through the Alamodome when the final horn sounded, stunning and sudden. The Blue Devils’ quest for a sixth NCAA championship had come to an end, and with it, Scheyer’s brief term as head coach, which had begun to seem like a coronation moment after replacing retiring Hall of Famer Krzyzewski, had brought them to their first Final Four appearance.
“It was an incredible season,” Flagg exclaimed, her voice trembling with emotion, following a 27-point performance. Incredible connections with wonderful people that will last a lifetime. Still an amazing year, even though it didn’t finish like we had hoped.
After being in complete control throughout the game, Duke (35-4) found themselves in a last-second jam after LJ Cryer made his final two free throws having 3.7 seconds remaining. With no timeouts remaining, the Blue Devils had only Sion James’ full-court jump shot to attempt a tie-breaking 3-pointer. Unfortunately, the ball was only able to reach Tyrese Proctor’s hands after a scramble caused by a deflection, and Proctor wasted no time turning and wildly flailing it towards the basket.
At the sound of the horn, the ball sailed past all obstacles.
After collapsing to the floor in agony, James glanced around and saw that the Cougars’ bench was racing toward him to celebrate a dramatic win. He had to get up fast. Houston Rockets player J’Wan Roberts, a big 23-year-old in his sixth season, sprinted up to Cougars fans on the court’s edge, popped out the front of his jersey, and screamed with joy.
The 18-year-old Flagg drew near the elevated court’s edge, looking for the stairs leading to the tunnel and the locker room, as the Houston players reveled. Even rookie big man Khaman Maluach, who was visibly upset, was stunned and his teammates followed suit.
The worst part was that the Blue Devils had to go through the cluster of Houston supporters that was the arena on their way to the dressing room. A swarm of red-clad admirers waved goodbye and captured the excitement with their phones as Duke makes its way off.
Finding oneself in that position seemed implausible for a single squad to rank inside KenPom’s top five for modified offensive plus defensive efficiency. However, there were certain snags, and minor slip-ups that seemed to add up when up against a determined opponent.
Flagg fouled Roberts as he attempted to reach past his box out, and the most notable sequence occurred when Proctor missed the first end of a one-and-one free shot with Duke leading by one point. With 19.6 seconds remaining, Roberts cooledly made both to put his team up 68-67. He had a 62.5% shooting percentage coming into the game. Duke Dropped Semifinal Match Against Houston
Then, following a timeout, Flagg had an opportunity to assault Roberts with the ball. The 6’9″ forward, who is a potential first-round NBA draft pick, drove to the left, spun around, and dipped his shot across the lane past Roberts’s extended hand.
Though it was a short shot, the ball landed with the Cougars after bounced off the front side of the rim, setting up Cryer for his final free throws to finish his own spectacular night, in which he scored 26 points.
“You can trust Cooper with all your heart,” James declared. “The offensive rebound was within my reach, but I was unable to seize it.”
Flagg hinted that it was more than just a shot. Emanuel Sharp was able to pull Houston inside 67-64 through 32.2 seconds remaining on the clock thanks to a poorly executed defensive switch involving Flagg and James. Duke Dropped Semifinal Match Against Houston
Even more so the subsequent inbounds pass, in which James attempted to throw the ball to Flagg while under full court pressure from the Cougars and Mylik Wilson, a 6-2 defender. However, the lead was soon reduced to 67-66 as Wilson created a turnover by deflecting the ball. Joseph Tugler then scored a slam off a miss, bringing the game closer.
Even before then, with 8:17 remaining and Duke holding a commanding 59-45 lead, the seeds were already being planted. In contrast, the last minutes of the game were turned around when Houston scored 10 points in a row, opening (appropriately) with a 3-pointer by Cryer.
So, when Duke’s offense stalled in the last ten minutes, limiting them to nine points and a single basket, Scheyer appeared more concerned with his team’s defensive performance. The Cougars scored 42 points in the second half and converted 13 of the 19 second chances after the break.
The seemingly triumphant title march turned into a period of somber introspection, and there was still more of this to come.
“Clearly, as a coach, I’m currently thinking about any additional things I could have done or said to assist our team in the final moments,” Scheyer stated. “That’s the part that really gets under my skin.” Duke Dropped Semifinal Match Against Houston
