SAN ANTONIO — There is a tiny room with one black leather-based chair within the bowels of the Alamodome the place Cooper Flagg sits for the following six minutes till Duke‘s locker room to the media for good. Till the cameras disappear, if just for a second, Flagg will sit and wait. Till the reused questions on one closing late-game play gone awry can get shelved for the night time, Flagg will sit and wait.
Nothing can repair this ache, however a quiet room away from peeping eyes may also help.
Flagg is not alone. His roommate Kon Knueppel is in there, too, however the ache is palpable. Flagg’s anguish was obvious within the postgame press convention, simply moments after a Duke collapse that can go down as one of many largest choke jobs within the Closing 4’s illustrious historical past.
Truthful or not, Flagg’s clutch gene simply grew to become debate TV’s subsequent draft subject straw man after his go-ahead fadeaway jumper got here up simply quick within the closing 10 seconds of Saturday’s 70-67 loss to Houston.
“It is the play coach drew up,” Flagg mentioned. “Took it into the paint. Thought I obtained my toes set, rose up. Left it quick clearly. A shot I am keen to dwell with within the state of affairs. I went up on the rim, belief the work that I’ve put in.”
The ultimate second of Flagg’s phenomenal freshman season can be him being hidden in a room with an “approved personnel solely” signal taped to the door. It feels merciless and unforgiving on an evening when a coronation felt imminent. Hours earlier, Flagg had earned the distinguished Picket Award, handed to the very best participant in school basketball. For 39 minutes, he was simply that.
Flagg notched 27 factors, seven rebounds, 4 assists, three blocks and two steals. He grew to become the primary participant to ever lead his group in factors, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks in a Closing 4 recreation for the reason that defensive stats grew to become official in 1986. His right-wing trey and massive swat in an 46-second span felt like Flagg’s subsequent large March Second and a brand new staple of One Shining Second.
Then Duke squandered what was left of its lead — six factors — with 34 seconds to go. Houston, a lovable cockroach, merely refused to die. Duke helped it in its trigger.
- Flagg and Sion James — impeccable defenders, each of them — busted a change on the improper time to liberate Emanuel Sharp for an necessary 3-pointer with 33 seconds left to halve Duke’s lead down to simply three.
- Flagg’s questionable over-the-back foul gave J’Wan Roberts an opportunity to tie and provides Houston a 68-67 lead with a pair of stone-cold free throws.
- Tyrese Proctor missed (one other) entrance finish of a one-and-one within the closing minute of a recreation.
- Duke’s offense, which ranked No. 1 in halfcourt effectivity coming into tonight, had only one discipline aim within the closing 10 minutes of regulation. One!
All that obligatory context can be misplaced whereas the hot-take artists craft the “Flagg is not clutch” retort. You already know it is within the works.
“I am certain there’s much more that I might have accomplished to assist our guys on the finish there,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer mentioned. “That is the factor that kills me probably the most. The quantity of recreation conditions we have watched this yr. We’ve not had the real-life expertise on a regular basis, however that is one thing I actually felt we ready for. So I really feel like I let our guys down in that regard.”
In a manner, it was becoming {that a} sixth-year senior bested the freshman sensation on the game’s largest stage. Houston’s captain J’Wan Roberts was as much as the problem with quite a few stops in opposition to Flagg in closing time, together with on Duke’s second-to-last play of regulation. Contained in the huddle, Kelvin Sampson, and everybody else within the 68,252-member crowd, knew the place the ball was going. Sampson additionally knew who he wished guarding him, and it wasn’t JoJo Tugler, the Huge 12 Defensive Participant of the 12 months.
“I used to be there for it; I used to be not working from it,” Roberts mentioned, like a boxer after exiting the ring. “I really feel like he obtained to his spot however I obtained an awesome contest to change his shot and it was quick. I trusted myself in that second. I did not need any assist or stunts. I simply wished to protect him and dwell with the end result.”
The tip is all the time unforgiving, however this finish in this second could also be onerous to get better from. Flagg did not admit it Saturday, however this one will stick in his thoughts perpetually. He has loads of unimaginable, life-changing alternatives forward of him. However he won’t ever get this opportunity once more.
“After all, it hurts,” James, Duke’s senior level guard, mentioned in the midst of a devastated and quiet Duke locker room. “He wished to make the shot identical to all of us wished him to. Cooper is the very best participant within the nation. He is aware of it, we all know it. However after all it hurts. I simply wished to select him up. It simply feels incomplete. We wished to convey (championship) No. 6 again. We have been a recreation away.”
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Proper down the corridor, Houston assistant coach Kellen Sampson could not take the smile off his face after the Cougars took Flagg’s finest shot and by some means escaped to face Florida in Monday’s nationwide championship recreation.
“He is superior, man,” Sampson says. “He is a nightmare-infusing matchup for everyone. First half? He picked us aside together with his passing. I haven’t got sufficient superlatives for him. He’s a monster matchup drawback. It took a man who has been with us six years and is lengthy, athletic and about it to get in his manner. And he nonetheless had 25 or no matter.”
The long-term future for Flagg is as sunny as ever. He put a bow on the most effective particular person seasons in school basketball historical past by breaking data left and proper. He’ll go down as one of many all-time freshmen that school basketball has ever housed, and he is earmarked to be the No. 1 decide within the 2025 NBA Draft.
However the subsequent few hours can be something however a ray of sunshine. The door opens and Flagg climbs right into a golf cart which jets down the corridor reserving for some semblance of solitude that can be not possible to search out.
Flagg’s school profession is over.