Duke won its ACC Tournament opener Thursday despite freshman star Cooper Flagg’s injury.
Flagg, the likely favorite to win national player of the year, went down in pain after rolling his left ankle while rebounding a Georgia Tech missed shot with 2:46 left in the first half. Flagg was helped off the court and eventually limped back into the locker room. He was later seen in a wheelchair on his way for further examination, but eventually returned to sit on the Blue Devils’ bench in the second half.
That’s a great sign, as it likely means Flagg’s injury isn’t extremely serious. Another positive indicator is the fact the five-star freshman’s parents never left their seats at any point, remaining in the crowd throughout the second half.
“Cooper Flagg’s parents still being in the stands going nuts for this team is 1) a good sign 2) really f’ing cool,” tweeted Ryan Lommen, co-host of the “Crazie Cast” for Field of 68.
Flagg, the projected No. 1 pick in this year’s NBA Draft, shot just 1-for-7 from the field and 0-for-3 from three-point range before exiting today’s game. He finished with two points, four rebounds, two steals and one blocked shot.
Duke, the No. 1 seed in the ACC Tournament after going 19-1 in conference play during the regular season, trailed by as many as 14 in the first half today. The Blue Devils missed their first 13 attempts from behind the arc, but eventually steadied themselves, ending the first half on a 12-5 run and scoring the first 12 points of the second half to take command of the game.
With their 78-70 win over the Yellow Jackets, Duke moves on to the semifinals tomorrow night, where they will face the winner of Wake Forest-North Carolina.
It seems unlikely, even if his ankle injury isn’t as bad as it looked, that we’ll see Flagg play on Friday, but crazier things have happened.
Meanwhile, Duke could also be without key reserve forward Maliq Brown, who left the game before halftime after reaggravating a shoulder injury.
Related: ESPN Taking Heat For Coverage Of Cooper Flagg’s Injury