Cooper Flagg, Duke’s top player and a frontrunner for National Player of the Year, will participate in the NCAA Tournament despite spraining his left ankle during the ACC Tournament opener. Dan Gavitt, the NCAA’s senior vice president of men’s basketball, confirmed that Flagg will be available for March Madness.
Flagg suffered the injury while landing on an opponent’s foot during a game against Georgia Tech. He was diagnosed with a sprained ankle but underwent X-rays, which came back negative. Coach Jon Scheyer said it’s not worth playing Flagg again this week, given Duke’s ambitions of winning its sixth national championship.
Despite missing his first game all season and the ACC championship game, Flagg will join Duke in the NCAA Tournament. Gavitt stated that Flagg’s injury won’t impact his seeding, suggesting Duke is likely to be a No. 1 seed on Selection Sunday.
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6206032/2025/03/15/duke-cooper-flagg-injury-ncaa-tournament