Duke star Cooper Flagg to miss rest of ACC tournament with injured ankle
By Julia Andersen, CNN
(CNN) — Duke star forward Cooper Flagg missed Friday’s ACC tournament semifinal showdown against archrival North Carolina after an ankle injury suffered in the Blue Devils’ victory over Georgia Tech a day prior.
Following the Blue Devils’ 74-71 victory over the Tar Heels to advance to the ACC title game, Duke head coach Jon Scheyer said the freshman phenom will miss Saturday’s game as well.
Scheyer added the program’s “goal” is to have Flagg ready for the NCAA tournament next week.
After being deemed “a real long shot” to play following Thursday’s game, Duke made their freshman phenom’s absence official with an announcement on X hours before tipoff.
Flagg’s absence on Friday was felt in the second half of the semifinal. After being up 24 points, the Tar Heels came storming back to cut the deficit to one late in the game.
North Carolina forward Ven-Allen Lubin went to the line to shoot two free throws with 4.1 seconds left to potentially give the Tar Heels the lead. But he missed the first and made the second free throw before it was waved off after teammate Jae-Lyn Withers stepped in the lane too early, securing the win for the Blue Devils.
Duke also faced the Tar Heels without junior forward Maliq Brown, who injured his shoulder in the game against Georgia Tech.
The Blue Devils will face the winner between No. 10 Clemson and No. 13 Louisville in the title game Saturday at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Scheyer told reporters Thursday that Flagg, who has averaged nearly 19 points per game this season, suffered a sprained ankle but said the X-rays came back negative.
The projected No. 1 pick in the 2025 NBA draft was seen in a wheelchair before returning to sit on the sidelines in the second half of Thursday’s win.
Flagg fell to the ground clutching his left ankle with 2:46 remaining in the first half. The ACC Player of the Year had been jumping for a rebound when he appeared to roll his ankle upon landing.
His teammates helped him up but Flagg limped off the court on his own.
“I already know how [Flagg’s] wired,” Scheyer said post-game. “And look, to be honest with you, I would have to be, like, convinced by everybody in the locker room when I go back there that he should play. It’s not worth it. It just isn’t.
“It’s not about being ready to go tomorrow (Friday). That’s not the most important thing for us. We’ve got to see if we can get him right for this run that we can make in the (NCAA) tournament. But I would have to be really convinced that we should even consider seeing if he can go tomorrow (Friday).”
“But I think it’s a real long shot. A real long shot.”
Flagg’s injury scare came with the Blue Devils down 26-17 and after already having lost Maliq Brown to a re-dislocated shoulder earlier in the half.
“We’re going to stay together. Obviously, ‘Coop’ [Flagg] is a huge part of our team. It hurts to see him go down, same with ‘Liq [Brown]. But it’s next man up, you know, and we’re going to keep picking our guys up,” freshman Isaiah Evans said about the team’s ability to comeback in difficult circumstances.
“I think it just shows that, you know, we’re a real team. It’s not really about one person or two people. It’s about Duke.
“Duke is gonna handle business all the time. That’s what we came here to do.”
The Blue Devils rallied from a 14-point deficit – tied for their largest comeback this season – to beat Georgia Tech in the quarterfinal.
Duke and North Carolina tip off on Friday at 7p ET in the ACC Tournament semifinal in Charlotte, North Carolina.
CNN’s Kevin Dotson and Jacob Lev contributed to this report.
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