CNN
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Duke star forward Cooper Flagg faces a race against the clock after an ankle injury forced him off in the first half of the Blue Devils’ 78-70 victory over Georgia Tech on Thursday.
Duke head coach Jon Scheyer told reporters that Flagg suffered a sprained ankle but said the X-rays came back negative.
The projected No. 1 pick in the 2025 NBA draft was seen in a wheelchair before returning to sit on the sidelines in the second half.
Flagg fell to the ground clutching his left ankle with 2:46 remaining in the first half. The ACC Player of the Year had been jumping for a rebound when he appeared to roll his ankle upon landing.
His teammates helped him up but Flagg limped off the court on his own.
“I already know how [Flagg’s] wired,” Scheyer said post-game. “And look, to be honest with you, I would have to be, like, convinced by everybody in the locker room when I go back there that he should play. It’s not worth it. It just isn’t.
“It’s not about being ready to go tomorrow (Friday). That’s not the most important thing for us. We’ve got to see if we can get him right for this run that we can make in the (NCAA) tournament. But I would have to be really convinced that we should even consider seeing if he can go tomorrow (Friday).”
“But I think it’s a real long shot. A real long shot.”
Flagg’s injury scare came with the Blue Devils down 26-17 and after already having lost Maliq Brown to a re-dislocated shoulder earlier in the half.
“We’re going to stay together. Obviously, ‘Coop’ [Flagg] is a huge part of our team. It hurts to see him go down, same with ‘Liq [Brown]. But it’s next man up, you know, and we’re going to keep picking our guys up,” freshman Isaiah Evans said about the team’s ability to comeback in difficult circumstances.
“I think it just shows that, you know, we’re a real team. It’s not really about one person or two people. It’s about Duke.
“Duke is gonna handle business all the time. That’s what we came here to do.”
The Blue Devils rallied from a 14-point deficit – tied for their largest comeback this season – to beat Georgia Tech in the quarterfinal.
Duke next face rival North Carolina on Friday at 7p ET in the ACC Tournament semifinal.