Cooper Flagg’s last shot… | Page 2 | Syracusefan.com

Cooper Flagg’s last shot…

It looked like he wanted to go to the hoop on the left baseline, but Maluach’s guy helped and forced him to the middle. The big mistake was Scheyer having Maluach in the game at all in that situation. He was terrible.
This is the exact take I came here to make. They got Flagg in the post like they wanted but Maluach being on the court completely ruined the entire design. It gave Houston the thought that only one of two things could come from that. Maluach was going to be setting a screen somewhere and if he wasn’t he was gonna be clogging the paint. Once Flagg caught the ball in the post he wanted to make his move left but the combination of the baseline and Maluach’s defender being able to step up to the other side of the post caused Flagg to have to change his move and go right which thus allowed the primary defender on him to slide and beat him to his spot on the jumper. With all that taking longer, Maluachs defender was able to secondarily contest the shot from the side. I’d image Houston’s pressure and defense had Flagg fatigued at the end as well based off of how badly that shot ironed.
 
I have no problem with the call. It looked like a textbook blockout. Flagg was in bad position. If anything it’s a non call but there is no way in hell it was a foul on the Houston player.
I think if it didn’t look like he propped himself off the Houston player it may not have been called but the grab/push thing right when Flagg starts moving looks like he uses the Houston player to prop himself up and over slightly and IMHO that’s what got it called.
 
This is the exact take I came here to make. They got Flagg in the post like they wanted but Maluach being on the court completely ruined the entire design. It gave Houston the thought that only one of two things could come from that. Maluach was going to be setting a screen somewhere and if he wasn’t he was gonna be clogging the paint. Once Flagg caught the ball in the post he wanted to make his move left but the combination of the baseline and Maluach’s defender being able to step up to the other side of the post caused Flagg to have to change his move and go right which thus allowed the primary defender on him to slide and beat him to his spot on the jumper. With all that taking longer, Maluachs defender was able to secondarily contest the shot from the side. I’d image Houston’s pressure and defense had Flagg fatigued at the end as well based off of how badly that shot ironed.
Except it didn't go down as you described. Flagg did not catch the ball in the post. He got the ball on the sideline, well above the free-throw line extended and beyond the 3-point line. He tried to take his man off the dribble going left to the baseline. Maluach was not in the paint when Flagg started his drive - he was on the weak side low block. Malauch's defender left him and immediately rotated into the paint as Flagg was driving. It was a GREAT rotation by the Maluach's defender that forced Flagg to spin back into the lane. He got a good look in the paint from about 12 feet. Just missed the shot.

Watch the rotation on Flagg's shot - it was sideways, short, and uncharacteristic for him.


 
Have to ask about that foul shot miss over-the-back on Flagg. Now, his "victim" backed into Flagg and put both his hands on Flagg's legs. Maybe even grabbed his shorts with his right hand. Is that normal?
I think everything about that sequence was normal until the refs decided to call it a foul. That jostling they were doing happens on basically every box out ever. I think the ref thought Flagg was holding the guy's right arm behind his back but everything that happened on that play was pretty incidental.
 
This is a good point, I need to go back and watch the play again. They also had Roberts, who has good size on him, contesting the shot.

Yeah I just went back and watched it again. Maluach is just hanging out in the dunker spot and his defender kinda just leaves him and stands in the paint. James ran through to the other corner and his defender was basically in the paint as well.
Yes that Duke possession was terrible spacing. Better to get Maluach out of the lane and clear out for Flagg to drive it. Have Kon K as a safety valve to kick it out. Those are the only 2 guys to take the shot. Nobody else. It's a tribute to those 2 guys that this Duke team made it this far with such mediocre guards. Proctor was awful in this game. Missed several wide open looks and of course the free throws too -- very un-Duke like. I'm sure Coach K's head must have been exploding watching it unfold.
 
With apologies to the OP:

If SU kept running the same inbounds play (that never worked) over and over again down the stretch like Scheyer did, Syracuse fans wouldn't have waited for Red to be fired, they'd have diverted some of their NIL money to hire an assassin to take him out.
 
With apologies to the OP:

If SU kept running the same inbounds play (that never worked) over and over again down the stretch like Scheyer did, Syracuse fans wouldn't have waited for Red to be fired, they'd have diverted some of their NIL money to hire an assassin to take him out.
I didn't watch a single minute of this tournament and just watched the last two minutes of this game. That was a monumental choke.
 
Except it didn't go down as you described. Flagg did not catch the ball in the post. He got the ball on the sideline, well above the free-throw line extended and beyond the 3-point line. He tried to take his man off the dribble going left to the baseline. Maluach was not in the paint when Flagg started his drive - he was on the weak side low block. Malauch's defender left him and immediately rotated into the paint as Flagg was driving. It was a GREAT rotation by the Maluach's defender that forced Flagg to spin back into the lane. He got a good look in the paint from about 12 feet. Just missed the shot.

Watch the rotation on Flagg's shot - it was sideways, short, and uncharacteristic for him.


I dont know why i said caught there considering I described the play as it happen prior to saying but it doesn’t really change how I described the play actually happening. I’m not betting on that look to fall. Hes failed in this spot multiple times this season. Flagg is an elite player but he doesn’t make his bread going 1v1 against good to great defenders yet, and he was defending by a great one. It’s just as much the fault of the coaching as Flagg but he has constantly been fatigued at the end of games and had no legs. https://x.com/itsantwright/status/1908739925735879133?s=46&t=0gLmNoax2wFFf8pwkRPX0Q
 
I will say the foul they called on Flagg was absolutely brutal. (when the whistle first blew I though it was gonna be on Houston) You truly hate to see it.
I think i'm the only person on earth who thinks it was the right call. He came straight over the back because the boxout was perfectly executed.

Houston is a fantastic rebounding team
 
One other note as I re-watched the ending of the game today. While I still hate Duke, Scheyer is infinitely more likable than Coach K.

In the postgame handshake line Scheyer actually stopped and said a few words to Kelvin Sampson. He was gracious in defeat. After a loss like that a classless Coach K would’ve rushed by Sampson at 80mph.
 
Yes that Duke possession was terrible spacing. Better to get Maluach out of the lane and clear out for Flagg to drive it. Have Kon K as a safety valve to kick it out. Those are the only 2 guys to take the shot. Nobody else. It's a tribute to those 2 guys that this Duke team made it this far with such mediocre guards. Proctor was awful in this game. Missed several wide open looks and of course the free throws too -- very un-Duke like. I'm sure Coach K's head must have been exploding watching it unfold.

I think the issue is if Maluach is on the court, regardless of where he is the defense will ignore him and stick his defender close to Flagg. But I also understand you wanting him on the court for an offensive rebound. (Though apparently he didn’t get a single rebound last night! Insane)
 
Totally. I mean, that's a shot he can make, but so is this...
Cooper Flagg throws down monster dunk in Duke's win over Pitt's win over PittCooper Flagg throws down monster dunk in Duke's win over Pitt's win over Pitt1,200 × 675


I do wonder how much of that is Scheyer's fault though. He doesn't have the tourney experience, Sampson does.
scheyer has never convinced me he's anything other than a guy in the right place, right time to capitalize on it...hes just a guy that happens to be lucky enough to get the reigns to a freight train, imo

i mean, how bad would you have to be as a coach to fail at duke??? think about it.

didnt watch the game...but losing a 6 point lead in the waning moments...and a 14 point lead at one point...is brutal.
 
Wow. I woke up this morning assuming dook won until I saw this thread. I turned off the game with dook up 9 with just under 3 minutes to go. I just watched the final 3 minutes. Love to see dook do a choke job. I was reaaaaally getting tired of all the cooper flagg talk and mentions of him doing what melo did. Suck it dook. I also love that my inlaws (all dook alumns) are coming over for dinner tonight. This will be a fun evening.
 
Duke fans after watching the team blow their lead against the press

IMG_5771.jpeg
 
... it was more about Houston’s ability to choke them. They won the game more than Duke lost it.
Absolutely.

Yes, Duke made some blunders down the stretch.
Can blame a missed free throw, a bad call, a pull up instead of a drive and missed good shots.
But defense wins games.
Houston turned it up and a tired Duke team couldnt handle it.
Add on Houston's relentless glass effort and good shooting.

Houston won it much more than Duke lost it.
 

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