NCAA Tournament”Final Four” Preview: #1 Duke Blue Devils (35-3, 19-1 ACC) vs. #2 Houston Cougars (34-4, 19-1 Big 12)

NCAA Tournament National Semifinal “Final Four”

#1 Duke Blue Devils (35-3, 19-1 ACC) vs. #2 Houston Cougars (34-4, 19-1 Big 12)

Saturday, April 5 • 8:49 p.m. ET

 Alamodome (64,000) • San Antonio, Texas

TV: CBS

Radio: Blue Devil Sports Network from LEARFIELD / Westwood One

The Duke Blue Devils battle the Houston Cougars for a chance to play for a title in San Antonio in a rematch of last season’s NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 in Dallas, Texas, on March 29, 2024.

TV/Video Stream CBS
Play-by-Play Ian Eagle
Analyst Bill Raftery
Analyst Grant Hill
Reporter Tracy Wolfson
Producer Ken Mack

Radio Blue Devil Sports Network
Play-by-Play David Shumate
Analyst John Roth
Engineer John Rose
In Durham 96.5 FM & 620 AM
Varsity Network App

Overall Duke leads, 1-0
In Durham, N.C. —
at Cameron Indoor Stadium —
In Houston, Texas —
at Fertitta Center —
Neutral Sites Duke leads, 1-0
in NCAA Tournament Duke leads, 1-0
Last Meeting Duke 54, Houston 51 (March 29, 2024; Dallas, Texas)

Houston, ranked No. 2 in the top-25 polls, makes its seventh appearance in the NCAA Tournament Final Four and the second time under head coach Kelvin Sampson. This is the Cougars’ third straight year as a No. 1 seed. Houston owns the nation’s longest win streak at 17 games, having won 30 of its last 31 contests since the end of November. They defeated Arizona, 72-64, to win the Big 12 tournament championship on March 15 in Kansas City, Missouri. Houston boasts the nation’s top adjusted defensive efficiency rating (87.4) on KenPom, and is 10th offensively (123.9). Kelvin Sampson’s team leads the country in scoring defense (58.3) and field goal percentage defense (.382). The Cougars also rank third in the nation in turnovers per game (9.0), fourth in scoring margin (15.8) and fifth in three-point percentage (.397).

LJ Cryer, Associated Press All-America Third Team selection, averages 15.4 points/game to top four double-figure scorers. Junior guard Emanuel Sharp checks in at second in scoring at 12.7 points per game. Another junior, Milos Uzan, adds 11.6 points per game to go along with a team leading 4.4 assists per contest. J’Wan Roberts rounds out the double figure scorers for the Cougars coming in at 10.7 points per game, he leads Houston in rebounding at 6.3 per game.

Duke’s 18th Final Four appearance ties UCLA for second-most all time. The Blue Devils are 11-6 in the national semifinal game, including an 8-2 record since 1990. Duke owns the second-highest net rating (39.62) in the history of KenPom (since 1996-97 season). Only the 1998-99 Duke Blue Devils have achieved a higher net rating (43.01). Duke leads the nation in scoring margin (+21.1) and ranks third in the country in assist-to-turnover ratio (+1.82), third in effective field goal percentage (.582), fourth in field goal percentage defense (.385), sixth in field goal percentage (.496), seventh in scoring defense (62.6), ninth in scoring offense (83.7), 10th in free throw percentage (.790), 11th in rebound margin (+7.7), 11th in three-point percentage (.386), 11th in turnovers per game (9.4), 16th in assists per game (17.1) and 20th in three-pointers per game (10.2) – all top marks in the ACC. The Blue Devils leads the ACC in scoring offense (83.7) and scoring defense (62.6), and could become the first team in ACC history to lead the conference in both categories. Duke is the only team in the country ranked among the top-four in both offensive (1st) and defensive (4th) adjusted efficiency, according to KenPom. Duke is the only Division I team to score 80 points or more per game (83.7) and hold its opponents to fewer than 63 points per game (62.6). The 367 points are the most in the first four NCAA Tournament games by a Duke team.

Cooper Flagg leads the Blue Devils in scoring, rebounds and assists at 18.9, 7.5 and 4.2 respectively. Freshman Kon Knueppel comes in behind Flagg at 14.4 points per game and 2.8 assists. Junior guard Tyrese Proctor rounds out the double figure scorers for the Blue Devils at 12.5 per game.

PG Sion James 6’6, 220lbs – Grad Transfer
SG Tyrese Proctor 6’6, 183lbs – Junior
SG Kon Knueppel 6’7, 217lbs – Freshman
SF Cooper Flagg 6’9,  205 lbs – Freshman
C Khaman Maluach 7’2, 250lbs – Freshman

G LJ Cryer 6’1, 200lbs -Grad Student
G Emanuel Sharp 6’3, 210lbs – Redshirt Junior
G Milos Uzan 6’4, 190lbs – Junior
F Joseph Tugler 6’8, 230lbs – Sophomore
F J’Wan Roberts 6’8, 235lbs – Grad Student

Both teams, Duke and Houston, are big game hunters. These teams are incredibly good at what they do, and it comes down to the best defense vs the best offense in this game. Can Duke score against this aggressive Houston team?  Duke cannot afford to be weak with the basketball – that means showing the defense the ball, being careless and robotic with their passes and handoffs. I expect this game will not be called tightly and physicality will be allowed and Duke has to meet that moment. Defensively, Duke had to continue to do what they’ve done for the majority of the season. Duke has guarded as well as anyone in college basketball, and they will need to make sure that the Cougars feel them defensively. This came could very well be decided in the margins, Houston is used to controlling those margins – loose balls, offensive rebounds and second chance points. Duke has to win those 50/50 balls. They have to not allow Houston to live on the glass.

Houston shoots the ball extremely well from beyond the arc, but they do not over shoot it. They don’t shoot themselves out of games and are measured in the ones they take. LJ Cryer is their best shooter at 42%, but he’s also a player that can operate in other areas. Duke will need to defend solidly, with their length there is no need to close wildly, or jump on shot fakes. Being steady defensively will rule the day.