Cooper flag was not even born last time Duke dominated the Atlantic Conference as it has this season.
Now an esteemed beginner for the other ranked blue devils (19-2, 11-0 ACC) will try to help Duke secure his first 12-0 start in conference game since 2005-06 when it visits Syracuse on Wednesday evening .
Flag was already regarded as the probable No. 1 election in the upcoming NBA draft when he joined the Blue Devils last fall, and 6-foot-9 phenomena have performed accordingly. He leads the ACC with an average of 23.3 points per match in conference games and is ranked ninth in rebounding (7.3 per match) against the league enemies.
All in this season, flag average team high numbers in five important categories: points (20.0), returns (8.0), assists (4.2), steals (1.5) and blocked shots (1.2).
Apart from being Duke’s Go-to Score, Flagg is an anchor for a Blue Devils defense that entered Tuesday ranked as fifth in the country on average points allowed (60.0) and sixth in the opponents field-target rate (37.7 ).
Flag reinforced his steal and blocked average Saturday when he counted three thefts and two rejections in Duke’s 87-70 home victory over Archrival North Carolina in Durham, NC
Fellow Freshman Kon Knueppel delivered two steals and one block when Blue Devils forced 14 turnover and diverted several passes to further disturb the tar heels’ ball movement.
“I think it’s really hard (to hit us) if we can divert the ball so many times,” Knueppel said. “Our defense will always lead to our crime, and that is what we want to hang our hats at that end of the floor.”
Knueppel is an average of 13.5 points and 3.8 returns per match, while Tyrese Proctor is on average 10.7 points. Knueppel scored 22 points to lead Duke on Saturday, and flags added 21.
Duke will set the country’s longest active winning line-15 matches-against an acidcuse squad (10-12, 4-7) that snapped a three-game skid with a 75-66 victory on Cal on Saturday. Lucas Taylor led Orange with 19 points, while Backcourt buddy JJ Starling added 18 and middle Eddie Lampkin Jr. Took 10 returns.
Starling is ranked ninth in ACC with 16.7 points per match during conference games but has recently struggled. He shot 6 out of 18 from the field against Golden Bears after meeting only 3 out of 16 attempts in a loss of 70-61 on Stanford last Wednesday.
Starling still found other ways to contribute Saturday, wash four assists without turning the ball. He also took five returns to supplement Taylor’s seven, and the Syracuse coach Adrian Autry said he wants to see more of that aggression on the glass forward.
“That’s the difference when our guards recover,” Autry said. “… our frontcourt has been recovered all year. We have to get our guards to recover more.”
Syracuses plus-1.5 rebounding margin against ACC opponents ranked as seventh of 18 teams, but Orange will meet the ultimate test in Blue Devils, whose plus-10.6 margin is more than five better than the next cloudy squad (Louisville, Plus – 5.1).
Duke has defeated Syracuse nine straight times, including 86-66 in the team’s lone meeting last season in Durham.
-Field level media
