Duke’s basketball team advances to its 18th Final Four with an 85-65 victory over Alabama.

NEWARK, NJ April 1, 2025: Duke’s lineup of tall, NBA-ready players overwhelmed Alabama,

masking Cooper Flagg’s poor shooting performance to propel the Blue Devils to an 85-65 victory in the NCAA Tournament’s East Region final, securing the program’s 18th Final Four appearance.

Flagg struggled, hitting only 6 of 16 shots, including one that got stuck in the rim, but still managed 16 points. Kon Knueppel, another NBA prospect, led Duke with 21 points.

The most notable stat: Alabama’s top-ranked offense, coming off a record-setting 3-point performance in the Sweet 16, couldn’t break 70 points for just the second time this season.

The Crimson Tide shot 35.4 percent from the field, their worst performance of the season, and just 25 percent from 3-point range (8 for 32), matching their fourth-worst showing of the season.

Mark Sears, who had hit 10 3-pointers in the previous game, struggled with only one 3-pointer and six points.

Duke’s 35-3 record includes a 15-game winning streak. At the Final Four in San Antonio, they will face the winner of Sunday’s game between Houston and Tennessee. Duke’s win also eliminated the possibility of an all-Southeastern Conference Final Four, while keeping alive the chance for all four top seeds to make the Final Four for only the second time.

Khaman Maluach contributed 14 points on 6-of-7 shooting, and Duke shot 53.6 percent despite Flagg’s rough night. Flagg also grabbed nine rebounds, provided three assists, and delivered a spectacular block.

Both teams focused on containing each other’s top players, but Duke was more successful, especially in limiting Sears, who didn’t score until nearly 18 minutes into the game and finished 2 for 12 from the field, including 1 for 5 from 3.

Labaron Philon led Alabama with 16 points. No Alabama player made more shots than he missed.

Duke’s coach Jon Scheyer, taking the program to its first Final Four since Mike Krzyzewski’s last season in 2022, has up to six NBA prospects on the roster, all contributing both offensively and defensively, as Alabama struggled to resemble the team that had set tournament 3-point records earlier.

Final Four firsts

The only other Final Four with all No. 1 seeds was in 2008 when Kansas, Memphis, UCLA, and North Carolina reached the stage, also in San Antonio.

Another title for Tide wheelchair team

For Alabama fans, it wasn’t a completely disappointing night: just before tipoff, the Alabama women’s wheelchair basketball team claimed its fifth straight national championship with a 67-52 win over Texas-Arlington.