Duke Dominates Pitt Behind Flagg’s Heroics
In the second half of Duke’s commanding 76-47 victory over Pitt on Tuesday night, freshman standout Cooper Flagg—despite carrying three fouls—delivered a highlight-reel moment. Intercepting a pass from Pitt’s Jaland Lowe, Flagg sprinted the length of the court and soared for a one-handed dunk over Pitt’s Guillermo Diaz Graham, who stands three inches taller.
The dunk, which also drew a foul, left the sellout crowd at Cameron Indoor Stadium roaring in disbelief. Even teammate Sion James was astonished.
“I thought he’d lay it up when Diaz Graham stepped up because that’s what anyone else would do,” James told the Associated Press.
Flagg, however, had other ideas. “As soon as I jumped, my mind went blank—it all happened so fast,” he said.
Moments later, Flagg scored on another dunk, giving him nine points in just six minutes of the second half. Pitt, trailing 47-33 at that point, couldn’t recover, seeing their five-game winning streak snapped and falling to 3-1 in the ACC.
Flagg, Freshmen Power Duke
Flagg finished with 19 points, including 14 in the second half, while fellow freshman Kon Knueppel added 17 points. Tyrese Proctor, Khaman Maluach, and Sion James also scored in double figures for the No. 4 Blue Devils, who extended their winning streak to nine games.
“We played a team capable of winning a national championship,” Pitt associate head coach Milan Brown said postgame. “To compete with them, we needed to be at another level, and we didn’t reach it.”
Pitt’s Struggles
Pitt’s usually reliable guard duo of Lowe and Ishmael Leggett combined for just 12 points, far below their season averages. The Panthers also shot a dismal 31% from the field, well below their ACC-leading 49.5% shooting average.
Cam Corhen led Pitt with 11 points, while Damian Dunn, returning from a thumb injury, chipped in seven off the bench. Despite briefly cutting Duke’s lead to 58-47 with under eight minutes remaining, Pitt was held scoreless for the final stretch as Duke closed the game on an 18-0 run.
Slow Start, Strong Finish for Duke
Both teams struggled offensively in the opening minutes, but Duke found their rhythm midway through the first half. With Flagg on the bench due to foul trouble, Mason Gillis and Knueppel stepped up, helping the Blue Devils close the half on a 10-0 run.
Knueppel’s three triples during a brief stretch gave Duke a 34-24 halftime lead, marking Pitt’s lowest-scoring first half of the season.
Moving Forward
Pitt looks to rebound against Louisville on Saturday, aiming to learn from this loss without dwelling on it. “We need to leave this behind in Durham,” Brown said. “Good teams don’t carry losses with them—they take the lessons and move forward.”
Louisville enters the matchup on a five-game winning streak after defeating Clemson 74-64. For Pitt, the focus will be on recapturing their form and shaking off a tough loss against a title-contending Duke squad.
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