Duke will be without star Cooper Flagg and forward Maliq Brown during Friday night's ACC tournament semifinal game against North Carolina.
Flagg sprained his left ankle during the Blue Devils' 78–70 win over Georgia Tech in the ACC quarterfinals on Thursday. Coach Jon Scheyer said he expects it to be a "long shot" for Flagg to return for the conference tournament.
The Blue Devils are still worried about Flagg's status for the NCAA tournament, which begins next week. Duke is projected to be a No. 1 seed at this time. It is unknown if Flagg will play in the NCAA tournament, although ESPN analyst Seth Greenberg said Friday that he believes the freshman phenom will want to play to help Duke win a national title and build his legacy at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Duke's Cooper Flagg will not play tonight against UNC in the ACC semi-finals. He sprained his left ankle Thursday night against Georgia Tech and was deemed a "long shot" to return by Duke coach Jon Scheyer. pic.twitter.com/ZW9ASN5ETw
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) March 14, 2025
Brown also left Thursday's game early with a shoulder injury. He just returned to action last Saturday after missing nearly a month from dislocating his shoulder. It's unknown when Brown is expected to play again.
It'll be a tough contest for Duke on Friday since they'll be down two of their star players against UNC, who they beat twice during the regular season. North Carolina needs a win in order to help solidify its NCAA tournament chances.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Cooper Flagg Won't Compete in Duke's ACC Tournament Semifinal vs. UNC.
