College basketball’s national championship will come down to Houston and Florida.
Houston advanced to the program’s third title game by charging past Duke 67-64 despite trailing by 14 points with eight minutes remaining, shocking the Blue Devils with a comeback in the night’s second semifinal of the NCAA Tournament in San Antonio, Texas.
It followed another rally that saw the Gators top Auburn.
In the first Final Four featuring all four No. 1 seeds since 2008, Florida trailed by eight points at halftime but won 79-73 by summoning their third comeback of this tournament behind 34 points from star guard Walter Clayton Jr. It was the most points scored in a national semifinal since 1989, when Duke’s Danny Ferry also scored 34 and, on the heels of another high-scoring outburst in the Elite Eight, landed Clayton Jr. in esteemed company.
In the night’s second semifinal, Duke was harried during the opening minutes by the Cougars’ nation-leading defense, but quickly found its rhythm behind freshmen Kon Knueppel and Cooper Flagg while taking a 34-28 halftime lead. That lead grew to 14 with eight minutes left, only for Houston to go on a 10-0 run as Duke failed to score a field goal for more than seven minutes until Flagg drained a critical 3-pointer with three minutes to play. The shot extended Duke’s breathing room to nine points, but the game took a turn yet again with two minutes to play.
Behind a defense that was ranked as the country’s best entering the tournament, Houston used a full-court press to fluster Duke’s inbounding and score seven unanswered points in 15 seconds — part of a larger 13-3 run over 1:48 — to take a 68-67 lead with 17.2 seconds remaining. Still with an opportunity to take the lead, Duke put the ball in the hands of star freshman All-American Flagg, but his shot was short, and the Cougars would not be denied an opportunity to tangle with the Gators for the national title.
Flagg displayed why he is considered the presumptive No. 1 pick in June’s NBA Draft by finishing with 27 points, seven rebounds and four assists and just one turnover, but Houston’s Emanuel Sharp was more dominant down the stretch as he scored nine consecutive points for his team at one point; he finished with 16, while teammate L.J. Cryer scored 26.
Duke was attempting to win its sixth national title, and first since 2015. Instead, Houston will play for the national title for the first time since consecutive appearances in 1983-84. Florida, led by 39-year-old Todd Golden in his third season, won consecutive titles in 2006 and 2007. Both Houston coach Kelvin Sampson, 69, and Golden are coaching in their first national championship.
Final: Houston 70, Duke 67
What a comeback!
The Houston Cougars are heading to the national title game after a come-from-behind win over the Duke Blue Devils.
The Cougars ended the game on a 22-8 run to clinch the victory. Duke couldn’t hit a miracle 3 to tie the game on their last possession as time expired.
Cooper Flagg misses go-ahead shot!
Cooper Flagg missed a short fadeaway in the paint after Houston took the lead. The Cougars got the rebound and go to the line leading 68-67 with 3.7 seconds to go.
Houston takes the lead!
The Cougars have their first lead since they were up 6-5, taking a 68-67 lead after two J'Wan Roberts free throws.
How did Roberts get to the line? Cooper Flagg was called for an iffy over-the-back foul after a missed free throw by Tyrese Proctor.
It’s a one-possession game!
An Emanuel Sharp three has brought Houston within one possession late in this game. Duke’s lead is down to 67-64 with 32.4 seconds to go.
Key Houston player close to fouling out
Milos Uzan, the hero of Houston's Sweet 16 win over Purdue thanks to his last-second layup, has four fouls and is just one away from fouling out with 3:44 to play. Uzan has scored seven points with three rebounds and is one of the uber-athletic defenders who have made the Cougars so difficult all season.
Houston needs to cut deficit with clock stopped
To do that, it will need to get to the free-throw line, something that has happened rarely tonight for the Cougars. Houston is 6-of-10 from the line, while Duke (13-of-17) has made more free throws than the Cougars have even attempted. You can attribute that disparity to a number of factors but often it comes down to one team being more willing to get into the paint.
Here come the Cougars!
Houston is on a 10-0 run to make this a 59-55 game with under 5 minutes to go.
Cooper Flagg is the presumptive No. 1 draft pick for a reason
Duke is playing an incredibly clean game
With 11:54 left in the second half, the Blue Devils have only two turnovers compared to Houston’s eight.
Duke’s ability to take care of the ball is one of the major reasons Duke leads by double digits. The Blue Devils have attempted four more field goals and five more free throws than the Cougars.
Their last turnover came with 11:26 left in the first half.
Will anyone else on Houston step up?
The Cougars are hanging around despite having essentially a one-man offense right now.
L.J. Cryer has 18 points on 6-of-9 shooting and is the only player on the team in double digits for scoring. The rest of the team has 24 points on 9-of-28 shooting.
Houston is lucky to only be trailing 50-42 with 13:30 to go, but Cryer will need more help if the Cougars are going to come back.