SAN ANTONIO — The two best players in college basketball are each still standing ahead of Saturday’s national semifinal matchups, but Duke star Cooper Flagg has taken a decisive edge on Auburn’s Johni Broome in the race to see who can assemble the most hardware.
Flagg received both the Oscar Robertson Trophy and AP National Player of the Year honors as Friday at the Final Four turned into an unofficial coronation of the Blue Devils’ freshman phenom.
Both awards go to the top player in college basketball and add to a growing list of honors for Flagg, who was just 17 when the 2024-25 season began. Flagg was also named the CBS Sports Player and Freshman of the Year this week.
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Attention and accolades are nothing new for the projected No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. But even with unfinished business ahead over the coming days, the string of honors coming at the Final Four made for a unique moment to reflect on what’s been a smashing success of a stop through college basketball for Flagg.
“Just so proud of this guy, what he’s done,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer said. “I have to remind myself it’s a year early. He should be graduating high school now. To have the season that he’s had, I think the stats speak for itself. I think how hard he plays, the highlights, all those things speaks for itself. But it’s the person he is every day. His energy is contagious for our team. He’s an amazing leader. The job he’s done in the classroom at Duke. Just everything he does has taken our program to a new height this year.”
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On hand for the double-dose of Friday honors were Flagg’s family. His teammates even crashed the AP Player of the Year announcement to break press conference decorum with a round of applause and some cheers for their star comrade that no one seemed to mind.
“It fills us both with an immense amount of pride in all that he has accomplished,” Flagg’s mother, Kelly Flagg, told Andy Katz. “When we think he’s reached a certain level, he always kind of breaks through the ceiling and goes to the next level. It’s been fun for us to watch this unfold this year. We’re very proud.”
Heading into Saturday night’s showdown with No. 1 seed Houston, Flagg is averaging 18.9 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.3 blocks. He’s also become a common sight during commercial breaks during the NCAA Tournament while cashing on his marketability with a series of sponsorship deals.
Through all the hype, Flagg has maintained the support of his teammates and a focus on the task at hand as the Blue Devils eye their first national title in a decade.
“He’s humble,” Scheyer said. “Up here he’s humble. Behind the scenes not as much, which I’m good with. That’s what I want. But him, his family, they’ve been a dream come true for me, for us and our program. Obviously we got more work we want to do, finish this thing off.”
Though he’s about to play in the biggest game of his basketball career, Flagg came off as both relaxed and appreciative on Friday, even exchanging lighthearted jabs back and forth with his mom from a podium where he was once again the center of attention.
“I mean, I think I’m a regular kid,” he said. “I’m OK at basketball, I guess.”
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