The No. 1 Duke Blue Devils and No. 4 Arizona Wildcats both had aspirations of playing in San Antonio next weekend, but one of those dreams died Thursday after the two sides played for a spot in the Elite Eight.
Cooper Flagg and Duke have been the juggernaut they were advertised to be, winning their first two March Madness games by a combined 67 points against Mount St. Mary’s and Baylor. They continued that streak with their first win of fewer than 10 points Thursday vs. Arizona, winning 100-93.
Watch Duke vs Arizona in March Madness on Fubo (free trial)
Arizona gave the Blue Devils their best shot, especially by way of Caleb Love and his game-leading 35 points. But Flagg and Kon Knueppel scored 30 and 20 points, respectively, and were too much for the Wildcats, who refused to go away down the stretch.
Check out full scores, updates and highlights from Duke’s win vs. Arizona:
Duke vs Arizona score
What had been a comfortable Duke lead finished slightly more anxiety-inducing. The Blue Devils led by nearly 20 points at one point in the second half, but the Wildcats managed to cut it to seven points by the end of it, with Duke winning 100-93.
Duke vs Alabama basketball
With the Blue Devils’ win, Duke will now play Alabama in the Elite Eight following the Crimson Tide’s 113-88 win over No. 6 BYU.
Caleb Love stats
It may have come in a losing effort, but Love has nothing to be ashamed of from an individual standpoint. He scored a game-leading 35 points on 11-of-21 shooting, including 5 of 11 from 3-point range. He added four rebounds, an assist and a steal in the loss.
Duke vs Arizona Sweet 16 updates
This section will be updated throughout the game.
Arizona making a run vs Duke
Don’t declare the Wildcats dead, at least not yet. After falling behind by nearly 20 points in the second half, coach Tommy Lloyd’s team is roaring back, riding a 7-0 run to cut Duke’s lead to 78-70 with 7:47 remaining. Renowned Blue Devils assassin Caleb Love is up to a game-high 31 points.
Cooper Flagg no-look pass
Flagg’s been much more than a scorer for Duke against Arizona, as he showed so deftly early in the second half, when he drove to the basket, had the defense collapse on him and, without looking, finds a wide-open Sion James in the corner with a crisp pass, leading to a 3-pointer that put the Blue Devils up 56-44.
Duke gets out to hot second half start
Whatever momentum Duke had going into halftime has followed them out of the locker room. The Blue Devils score eight of the first 10 points of the second half to extend their lead to 56-44 in the opening three minutes of the period.
Duke, Cooper Flagg leading Arizona at halftime
Duke ended the first half in style, with Cooper Flagg calmly taking the ball up the court, checking the clock and draining a 3-pointer from the top of the key to double the Blue Devils’ lead to 48-42 at halftime. Flagg has a game-high 18 points.
As a team, Duke is 19-of-31 from the field (61.3%) and 7-of-13 from 3-point range (53.8%). Behind a team-high 14 points from Caleb Love, Arizona is 12-of-28 overall (42.9%) and 7-of-14 from 3 (50%).
Duke pulling ahead of Arizona
The Blue Devils are creating a little distance from the Wildcats, riding an 11-0 run to take a 23-16 lead over Arizona with 8:30 remaining in the first half. Freshman Kon Knueppel capped off the spurt with a 3-pointer.
Cooper Flagg points today
Flagg has 25 points, six rebounds and seven assists with 3:22 remaining. He’s 9-of-17 from the field and 3-of-5 from 3-point range. He has a steal and a block, as well, doing a little bit of everything for the Blue Devils.
Caleb Love points today
In what will be his final game against Duke, Love has 33 points on 10-of-19 shooting, including 5-of-10 from 3-point range. He also has four rebounds, an assist and a steal.
Alabama vs BYU score
The winner of Thursday’s game between Duke and Arizona will advance to take on No. 2 seed Alabama in the Elite Eight. Nate Oats and the Crimson Tide knocked off BYU 113-88 while making an NCAA Tournament-record 25 3-pointers (on 51 attempts). All-American guard Mark Sears led the way with 34 points while making 10 of his 16 shots from beyond the arc.
Maliq Brown injury update
While Cooper Flagg’s ankle generated most of the attention for Duke over the past two weeks, there was another Blue Devil who was dealing with an even trickier injury. Maliq Brown has played in just two games since Feb. 17 after suffering a dislocated shoulder on two different occasions, including most recently in an ACC Tournament win against Georgia Tech on March 13.
After sitting out Duke’s first two games of the NCAA Tournament, he’s now back. In the minutes leading up to the Blue Devils’ Sweet 16 game against Arizona, Duke announced that Brown is active, raising the possibility that he could make his way back to the court.
On Wednesday, Blue Devils coach Jon Scheyer said that Brown ‘could be available’ for Thursday, describing his status as ‘day-to-day.’ He took part in his team’s practice Wednesday, as well.
Though he averages only 2.6 points per game, Brown has been an integral piece for Duke this season, particularly on the defensive end.
Caleb Love stats
Duke will be facing a familiar foe Thursday night. Caleb Love has been a frequent villain for the Blue Devils, whose big performances for North Carolina against Duke in 2022 defeated the Blue Devils in their final home game under Mike Krzyzewski and knocked them out of the NCAA Tournament in Coach K’s final career game.
Now at Arizona, he’ll look to deliver one final blow to Duke in what could be his final college game.
This season, Love is averaging 16.8 points, 4.4 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.2 steals per game while shooting 39.3% from the field and 33.6% from 3-point range.
Duke vs Arizona men’s basketball betting odds
Odds courtesy of BetMGM as of March 26
Spread: Duke (-9.5)
Over/under: 153.5
Moneyline: Duke -500 | Arizona +375
Men’s March Madness championship odds
March Madness odds, according to BetMGM, as of Wednesday, March 26
Here’s a full look at the odds of each remaining team to win the men’s NCAA Tournament.
Duke (+210)
Florida (+340)
Houston (+475)
Auburn (+475)
Tennessee (+1600)
Alabama (+1900)
Michigan State (+1900)
Texas Tech (+2200)
Maryland (+3500)
Arizona (+5000)
Kentucky (+6600)
Purdue (+8000)
BYU (+8000)
Michigan (+8000)
Ole Miss (+9000)
Arkansas (+10000)
Duke vs Arizona picks and predictions
USA TODAY Network’s experts have Duke defeating Arizona across the board, with the Blue Devils’ firepower ultimately proving to be too much for the Wildcats.
Jeremy Cluff: Duke 79, Arizona 73
Craig Meyer: Duke 87, Arizona 79
Rodd Baxley: Duke 82, Arizona 70
Ryan Haley: Duke 83, Arizona 74
What time is Duke vs Arizona today?
Tipoff: 9:39 p.m. ET
Where to watch Duke vs Arizona?
TV Channel: CBS
Live Stream:Fubo (free trial)
Duke vs Arizona will be broadcast on CBS. Cord-cutters can find the game on Fubo, which offers a free trial, or Paramount+, CBS’ dedicated streaming service.