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David Hale
DURHAM, N.C. — Cooper Flagg wrapped the first half of Duke‘s 74-64 win over NC State with just five points, and during a late timeout, Blue Devils coach Jon Scheyer had some particularly pointed comments for his star freshman.
“He told me I was being finesse, soft,” Flagg said. “Coach is always honest with me about what he thinks. That’s what I need. It’s about responding well, and hearing that helps me a lot.”
He responded with force.
Flagg put up 23 second-half points and added five rebounds, an emphatic block and two assists, including a nifty dish to Sion James for a dunk just as the shot clock was about to expire.
Flagg’s fireworks keyed Duke, which erased a four-point halftime deficit to finish with a double-digit triumph.
“In that timeout, I challenged him because his game is not just about scoring but his game is about impacting winning in every facet. He knew it. Credit him for responding.”
Flagg said that type of criticism from his coach is exactly what drew him to Duke, and Scheyer said Flagg’s willingness to accept coaching is one of the traits that sets him apart.
“I could go on all day about Cooper, how coachable he is,” Scheyer said. “There’s maybe a few times throughout the year where he’s not going to like everything you say. A lot of guys will fight it, not acknowledge it. It’s a credit to him and the relationship he’s allowed us to develop, telling each other the truth.”
Scheyer chalked up some of Flagg’s early tentativeness to playing a second game in three days — something Flagg hadn’t yet done — after a physical outing against Wake Forest on Saturday. The coach said the sluggish first half ignited Flagg at the break, however, getting him “a little mad.”
Flagg said learning experiences are part of why he came to Duke and that Scheyer’s willingness to “let me work through some things” is critical. But his takeaway from his five-point first half on Monday was that the time for taking a back seat on the court is over.
“It’s not a choice anymore; I have to be aggressive,” Flagg said. “What Coach has told me is that’s going to create for everyone else. In the first half, I felt that a little more — just being passive and playing soft. I can’t create for anyone else that way. I can’t get anyone else open if I’m playing soft. For me, it’s no longer a choice of if I want to be aggressive or not. I have to be aggressive at all times.”
Despite Flagg’s heroics, NC State was within a point with 4:21 to play, as Duke struggled to pull away. But an extended break courtesy of Duke big man Khaman Maluach offered a final chance for the Blue Devils to prep for a late push.
Maluach had been taking fluids earlier in the game, but after a Wolfpack foul under the basket, the Duke freshman turned and vomited along the baseline. Officials paused the game, and a cleanup crew quickly gathered with a few dozen towels to soak up the mess. After the long pause in play, the game was stopped again as a Duke student was helped out of the stands after falling unconscious. A Duke spokesman said the student was fine and ultimately left the arena under her own power.
“That was just a little bit of a breather to set up and get stops and go on a run,” said Flagg, who helped Duke finish on an 11-2 run after Maluach’s departure. “It was a break to collect myself.”
Scheyer said Maluach hadn’t been ill but was cramping.
The two demanding contests in three days took a toll all around on Duke, Scheyer said, but the response he saw from his best player down the stretch was a reminder of just how much these Blue Devils have left in the tank.
“Coop is a special guy,” Scheyer said. “He got angry. He just had a chip. And when you do that, you forget about being tired. And he had some all-time plays to will us back. That’s a credit to his spirit, what he did in the second half.”