For more than 30 minutes, Duke looked every bit the part of a team ready to return to college basketball’s pinnacle. But then, the Houston Cougars did what they do best — suffocate, swarm, and silence.
With a smothering, no-room-to-breathe defense and just enough clutch shot-making, top-seeded Houston erased a 14-point second-half deficit to stun Duke 70-67 on Saturday night in the Final Four. The win puts the Cougars (35-4) into the national championship game for the first time since 1984, the final year of the iconic Phi Slama Jama era. They’ll face Florida on Monday night, seeking the program’s first national title.
“We don’t flinch,” said senior forward J’Wan Roberts. “When you play Houston basketball, you finish games with toughness, with grit. That’s what we did.”
Trailing 64-55 with just over three minutes to play, Houston appeared cooked. Duke had Cooper Flagg — the AP Player of the Year — rolling, and their lead looked insurmountable against a Cougars team struggling from the field. But what happened next was a masterclass in defensive tenacity and mental toughness.
The Cougars closed the game on a 15-3 run, including a 9-0 spurt over the final 33 seconds. Houston’s vaunted defense — anchored by Joseph Tugler and Roberts — held Duke to just one field goal over the last 10½ minutes, including a brutal 1-for-9 finish from the field.
Flagg, who finished with 27 points on 8-of-19 shooting, hit a dagger-like three with 3:02 left to put the Blue Devils (35-4) up nine. But he wouldn’t score again. Roberts disrupted his final attempt — a step-back jumper in the paint — and Tyrese Proctor’s desperation three at the buzzer didn’t draw iron.
Joseph Tugler was everywhere — four blocks, countless altered shots, and a tip-in that cut the deficit to one in the final minute. His energy sparked a team that thrives on momentum and stops. Houston prides itself on getting “kill stops” — three consecutive defensive stops — and down the stretch, they stacked them in bunches.
L.J. Cryer, a national champion at Baylor in 2021, led the way with 26 points, including two clutch free throws with 16 seconds left to extend the Cougars’ lead to 70-67. Roberts had already given Houston the lead moments earlier with two of his own. Emanuel Sharp added 16 points, including a huge three during the final push.
Houston’s last trip to the title game came 41 years ago, when Clyde Drexler and Hakeem Olajuwon soared above the rim in what became known as the “Phi Slama Jama” era. Despite the flair and dominance, they never sealed the deal. Fittingly, Olajuwon was in the building Saturday night, watching a new brand of Cougar basketball — built not on dunks, but on defense.
This version of Houston is ruthless. The Cougars have allowed the fewest points per game in the country this season, and against a Duke team loaded with NBA-bound talent — Flagg, Kon Knueppel (16 points), and others — they slammed the door shut.
Duke shot just 37.5% in the second half and scored a season-low 67 points, their second-worst offensive output of the year.
Flagg’s sensational freshman season ends with a crushing defeat. His fadeaway jumper with 3:02 left was the last Duke field goal. After that, Houston tightened the screws — Tugler blocked Knueppel, Sharp drilled a three, Wilson swiped an inbounds pass, and the Cougars did not let up.
Even a technical foul on Tugler with 1:12 left — for batting the ball out of Sion James’ hands during an inbounds — couldn’t rattle the Cougars. Proctor missed the front end of a one-and-one with 20 seconds left, setting the stage for Roberts’ free throws and the final push.
As the horn sounded, Flagg and the Blue Devils walked off in silence, flanked by Houston fans waving goodbye — and perhaps, farewell to the likely No. 1 pick in the upcoming NBA Draft.
For Houston, Monday night offers a chance at history. Against a high-flying Florida team that beat Auburn 79-73 in the earlier semifinal, the Cougars will again bring their defense-first, grit-laced identity to the hardwood. It may not be pretty. It may not be high-scoring. But it will be Houston basketball — relentless, resilient, and one win from a national championship.
