It had been 364 days since Duke basketball’s loss to rival North Carolina State in the Elite Eight, a result that would typically be seen as a success for most programs. But for the Blue Devils, it fell short of the high standards set by their former coach. “After that loss, I told Coach (Jon Scheyer) I was coming back, and we both had a vision,” said junior guard Tyrese Proctor. “The way we executed this year shows a lot of resiliency.” With a stellar freshman class, Duke stormed its way back to the Final Four. Kon Knueppel led the way with a game-high 21 points and five assists, Cooper Flagg added 16 points and nine rebounds, and top-seeded Duke triumphed over second-seeded Alabama 85-65 in the NCAA Tournament East Region final. This victory marked Duke’s 18th Final Four appearance and its first since Scheyer succeeded the legendary Mike Krzyzewski. The Blue Devils will face the winner of Houston vs. Tennessee in the Midwest Region final.
Proctor contributed 17 points on 7-of-10 shooting, while Khaman Maluach added 14 points, nine rebounds, and five dunks. Duke outshot Alabama 53.6% to 35.4% from the field and stifled a Crimson Tide team that had made a record 25 three-pointers in the Sweet 16. Flagg, projected as the top pick in this June’s NBA draft, struggled with 6-of-16 shooting, but Knueppel and Maluach picked up the slack. “Every night could be someone else’s night,” Flagg said. “Tonight, Kon stepped up and Tyrese was huge for us.”
Duke seized control early after Flagg hit a three-pointer just 19 seconds into the game and never relinquished the lead. Alabama (28-9) closed the gap to 65-58 with 8:03 remaining, but went cold for over five minutes. Flagg’s baseline jumper sparked a 13-0 run for the Blue Devils. Alabama’s Mark Sears, who had been stellar in the previous round, struggled mightily, finishing 2-of-12 shooting for six points, six assists, and five turnovers. Labaron Philon led Alabama with 16 points, while Grant Nelson and Chris Youngblood each scored 10.
Alabama, trailing 15-5 early, rallied with back-to-back threes from Aiden Sherrell to cut the deficit to 21-17. But they missed 11 of their next 12 shots. Sears, who had started 0-for-3, was blocked by Maluach on an attempted layup. “When we drove, they built out and had great rim protection,” Sears said. Flagg’s three-point play gave Duke a 46-37 lead at halftime. In the second half, the Blue Devils maintained a steady advantage between seven and 11 points, with Proctor adding a pair of layups to extend the lead to 63-50. Duke shot over 50% from the floor for the fourth consecutive tournament game and dominated the boards, out rebounding Alabama by 10 in the second half. Scheyer was proud of his team’s growth. “Elite Eight is special, but we focused all season on winning the mental game, preparing, and bringing the right energy,” Scheyer said.