Cooper Flagg Out for ACC Title Game with Ankle Sprain Injury, HC Jon Scheyer Says

Duke forward Cooper Flagg will miss his team's ACC tournament championship game matchup on Saturday due to a sprained left ankle, per head coach Jon Scheyer to reporters on Friday (h/t Bryan Fischer of Sports Illustrated).

Scheyer relayed the news after Duke, which played without Flagg, defeated UNC 74-71 in the semifinals on Friday.

Flagg suffered the injury during the first half of Duke's 78-70 win over Georgia Tech in the ACC tournament quarterfinals on Thursday when he went up high for a defensive rebound and accidentally landed on Yellow Jackets forward Baye Ndongo's foot.

Thankfully, X-rays were negative, per head coach Jon Scheyer.

On Friday, Duke took a 24-point lead early in the second half but nearly saw all of it evaporate as UNC cut the deficit to 72-71 with 32 seconds left.

The Tar Heels had a chance to take the lead when Ven-Allen Lubin went to the line for two shots with four seconds left, but he missed the first before Jae'Lyn Withers committed a lane violation on the second attempt, giving the ball back to Duke.

Blue Devils guard Kon Knueppel made two free throws in response, and Lubin's three at the buzzer was off the mark, pushing Duke into the championship game.

At this point, the biggest question is how Flagg will be next week, when Duke starts its NCAA tournament run. He's an integral member of the team, leading the squad in all five major categories (18.9 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 4.1 APG, 1.5 SPG, 1.3 BPG). Flagg is looking like the 2025 NBA draft's No. 1 overall pick should he declare as well.

As far as the bracket goes, all signs point to the Blue Devils being the East region's No. 1 seed, which would mean a start date of Friday, March 21.

That would give Flagg eight days of rest, but it's unclear whether that would be enough for him, especially with Scheyer classifying the injury as a "good sprain."

So at this point, Duke is playing a waiting game on Flagg's injury. In the interim, the ACC Championship Game awaits Saturday before the team finds out its tournament fate on Selection Sunday.