Duke Dominates Wake Forest in Senior Night Blowout
Endings are never easy, especially for seniors taking in their final game from Section 17 at Cameron Indoor Stadium. But if this was a farewell, Duke made sure it was a memorable one.
In their final home game of the season, the Blue Devils crushed Wake Forest 93-60 on Monday night, delivering a statement win that secured at least a share of the ACC regular-season title. Head coach Jon Scheyer, now in his second season, remained undefeated at home for the second time in three years—marking the 20th time in program history Duke has gone unscathed at Cameron.
“To finish it off the right way, to get win number 27, to get ACC win number 18, means a lot,” Scheyer said in his postgame press conference.
Flagg’s Dominance Fuels Second-Half Surge
The Demon Deacons (20-10, 12-7 ACC) kept it competitive early in the second half, trimming Duke’s lead to 40-33 after a quick 6-0 spurt. But then came Cooper Flagg—and Wake Forest had no answer.
The freshman phenom put on a show, scoring at all three levels while wreaking havoc on defense. He drove for a layup, sank a mid-range jumper, and drilled a deep three, all within minutes. He didn’t just score—he created. At one point, Flagg spun into the lane, drawing multiple defenders before kicking it out to a wide-open Sion James, who buried a corner three.
“As a coach, [Flagg] allows you to do a lot of different things because of his versatility,” Scheyer said. “There’s not really a matchup for him. And if you double team, he passes; if it’s one-on-one, he scores it.”
Duke Rains Threes in Second Half
James’ three was one of several in a blistering second-half stretch. Duke opened the final 20 minutes hitting four of their first seven threes, with Flagg, Isaiah Evans, and Mason Gillis all getting in on the action. Gillis, in particular, ignited the Cameron crowd by sinking two threes in 26 seconds, prompting a Steve Forbes timeout—and an impromptu celebration set to LMFAO’s Shots over the loudspeaker.
By the time the dust settled, Duke led 65-41 with just over 11 minutes remaining. The rout was on.
A Slow Start Turns Into a Statement Win
Duke (27-3, 18-1 ACC) didn’t start the night with that kind of dominance. In fact, the Blue Devils struggled out of the gate. More than three minutes ticked off the clock before Kon Knueppel finally got them on the board with a jumper.
“I thought it was a great collective effort against a good team where we didn’t necessarily make all the shots right away,” Scheyer said. “I thought they took us out of our offensive rhythm.”
But by halftime, Duke had found its groove. Knueppel assisted Khaman Maluach on a thunderous dunk before draining a three himself, part of a late push that put the Blue Devils up 40-27 at the break.
Looking Ahead: The Biggest Rivalry in Basketball
With Wake Forest in the rearview, all eyes now turn to Saturday night’s regular-season finale against UNC at the Dean Smith Center. A win would give Duke the outright ACC title and plenty of momentum heading into the conference tournament.
Regardless of how the season ends, this Duke squad has already left its mark. And for the seniors who bid farewell to Cameron Indoor on Monday, it was the perfect sendoff.
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