Flagg, Knueppel Power No. 2 Duke to 74-64 Victory Over NC State

  

Flagg, Knueppel Power No. 2 Duke to 74-64 Victory Over NC State

Duke secured its 14th consecutive win of the season, defeating N.C. State 74-64 in a tightly contested game. Despite a strong first-half performance from the Wolfpack, the Blue Devils prevailed with key free-throw shooting and a surge of offense in the second half.

Kon Knueppel set the tone early in the second half, grabbing a steal and finishing with a layup. Both teams struggled offensively for the next few minutes, but N.C. State's shooting woes allowed Duke to regain the lead. Cooper Flagg contributed with a layup and a dunk, putting the Blue Devils up 41-37— their first lead since the opening points of the game.

N.C. State then went scoreless for six minutes, allowing Duke to extend its lead to eight. A three-pointer from Dontrez Styles broke the Wolfpack’s drought, and they slowly chipped away at the deficit, closing the gap to 47-44.

The teams exchanged baskets and fouls, but Flagg answered with a clutch three-pointer and completed a three-point play. Duke pushed its lead to 57-50 after a steal by Khaman Maluach and another jumper from Flagg, forcing N.C. State to call a timeout.

As the final minutes ticked down, N.C. State continued to press. The Wolfpack closed the gap to just two points when Marcus Hill converted a layup and an and-one. But Flagg responded with two free throws, followed by a layup to extend Duke's lead to 68-62. With defensive stops and a layup from Patrick Ngongba II, Duke sealed the victory.

Both teams played high-energy basketball early on, with N.C. State’s Paul McNeil Jr. making an impressive block on Knueppel. However, the Wolfpack hit a hot streak from three-point range, shooting 66.7% in the first half, while Duke struggled at 14.3%. By halftime, N.C. State led 35-24, with Styles and O’Connell leading the charge with 13 and 9 points, respectively.

Duke found momentum late in the first half, with Flagg hitting a jumper and making a steal that led to a three-pointer from Knueppel. Sion James capped a 7-0 run with a late layup and an and-one, bringing the Blue Devils within four at the half, 37-33.

Duke will look to complete a sweep of the Research Triangle teams when they face North Carolina at Cameron Indoor on February 1.

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