-
Jeff Borzello
SAN ANTONIO, Texas — Saturday’s Final Four matchup between Duke and Houston seemed like another stop on the Blue Devils’ march to a national championship, just another coronation for the looming Cooper Flagg and Duke title.
After a Tyrese Proctor free throw put Duke up by 14 points with 8:17 left in the second half, the inevitable seemed closer than ever.
But Houston stayed true to its culture — defense, toughness and offensive rebounding — to flip the game and stun Duke, 70-67.
The Cougars went on a 9-0 run in the final 35 seconds, taking the lead on two J’Wan Roberts free throws with 19 seconds remaining and then icing the game with two LJ Cryer free throws with 3.7 seconds to go. Flagg came up short on a turnaround jumper on the next-to-last possession and Proctor’s desperation 3-pointer at the buzzer was long.
Cryer led the way with 26 points and six 3-pointers, while Flagg’s final college game featured a 27-point, 7-rebound, 4-assist performance in a losing effort.
The Cougars advance to Monday’s national championship game to face Florida, which beat Auburn earlier Saturday. They’ve reached the title game twice before, in 1983 and 1984, but have yet to win a national title.
This post was originally published on this site