There haven’t been many difficult games for the Duke basketball team in its 16-game winning streak but Saturday afternoon against Clemson was very similar to its road matchup against Wake Forest.
A strong start combined with a sloppy beginning to the second half that saw a lead turn into a deficit, only to rally in the closing minutes. However, this ending was different.
What the No. 2 Blue Devils were able to finish off against the Demon Deacons was not able to be replicated against the Tigers, losing 77-71.
After leading by six points, 41-35, at halftime, Clemson (19-5, 11-2 ACC) opened the second half on a 21-8 run that resulted in its largest lead of the game, 56-49, but Duke showed its toughness and rallied in front of the sold-out crowd.
Cooper Flagg, mostly a non-factor in the first 33 minutes of the game, came alive to try and get Duke to the finish line scoring ten points in a four-minute span to tie the game at 67 on a 3-pointer with 2:06 remaining.
He’d give the Blue Devils the lead, 71-70, with his third 3-pointer in five minutes with 58.7 seconds remaining but Duke (20-3, 12-1 ACC) would never score again. Trailing by two, 73-71, with 18.9 seconds left, Flagg drove to his right coming out of a timeout and slipped on an apparent wet spot that had not been wiped up near the baseline.
cooper flagg slip pic.twitter.com/W3S3O3uGyI
— ◇ (@H00DH3R0) February 9, 2025
He was called for a travel, and it allowed Clemson to ice the game at the free throw line, giving Duke its first conference loss of the season. In all three losses Duke has suffered this season Flagg has committed a turnover inside the final minute of a one possession game, but this was nothing like his miscues against Kentucky and Kansas.
Cooper Flagg was heroic for Duke just to get them in a position to win the game, making 4-of-5 shot attempt in the final 5:16 with his only miss coming at the buzzer in the final seconds. He scored 14 of his 18 points with 6:05 left but it wasn’t enough.
Viktor Lakhin was too much to handle inside for Duke, scoring 22 points in the victory – including 14 points in the second half as the Blue Devils wasted the best performance of the season by Tyrese Proctor, who finished with 23 points.
Duke will return home to host one of the newest members of the ACC, California (12-12, 5-8 ACC), on Wednesday night (9:00 p.m. ET, ACC Network).