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2 weeks ago | 
hoopshq.com | Brett Friedlander |Drew Blouin |Seth Davis |Alex Squadron
SAN ANTONIO — Walter Clayton Jr. could barely move an inch without being swarmed by reporters. Orange and blue confetti blanketed the court beneath him. In his hands was the national championship trophy, which Florida had earned with a thrilling 65-63 victory over Houston just thirty minutes earlier.
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2 weeks ago | 
hoopshq.com | Brett Friedlander |Fred Segal |Drew Blouin |Alex Squadron
SAN ANTONIO — After a night of utter chaos and complete shock at the Alamodome, the building is peaceful on Sunday as the two teams left standing in the NCAA Tournament — Florida and Houston — regroup and prepare to face off in the national final. Florida is seeking its third championship in program history, while Houston is trying to reach the mountaintop for the first time ever. Both teams got to this stage in dramatic fashion.
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2 weeks ago | 
hoopshq.com | Drew Blouin |Riley Frain |Justin Perri |Alex Squadron
It was a massive bet on himself, but Clayton’s mind was made up. He was much happier on the court than on the gridiron. He had informed his mom, Cherie Quarg, of his decision following his sophomore year and the two had made a trip to IMG Academy in the hopes that Clayton could join its esteemed basketball program to get better exposure. After a long tour of the campus, it became clear that the school was more interested in Clayton for a football scholarship.
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3 weeks ago | 
hoopshq.com | Drew Blouin |Seth Davis |Riley Frain |Alex Squadron
Back in the Duke locker room, the celebration continued. “Fried” by Future and Metro Boomin — a squad favorite — blared through the speakers as the players rejoiced. Scheyer gave a quick speech in which he thanked the team for all it has done to reach this point and pointed out that the job is not finished.
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3 weeks ago | 
hoopshq.com | Seth Davis |Drew Blouin |Riley Frain |Alex Squadron
Alabama made history in its 113-88 win over BYU on Thursday, sinking an NCAA Tournament record 25 three-pointers. Duke also reached triple digits in its 100-93 victory over Arizona, shooting 60 percent from the field and 57.9 percent from deep. The All-Americans on both teams treated the sell-out crowd at the Prudential Center to a spectacular show. Alabama senior Mark Sears, a 6-foot-1 guard, buried 10 threes and finished with 34 points, 8 assists and 3 steals.
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3 weeks ago | 
hoopshq.com | Seth Davis |Riley Frain |Drew Blouin |Alex Squadron
Duke shared the ball tremendously well all game. The big men — 7-foot-2 freshman Khaman Maluach and 6-foot-11 freshman Patrick Ngongba II — caught multiple lobs for easy dunks. With just over four minutes remaining and Arizona mounting a comeback behind the brilliance of 6-foot-4 senior guard Caleb Love (35 points), Duke senior Sion James, a 6-foot-6 guard, buried perhaps the biggest shot of the night: a corner three off a terrific feed from Flagg to extend the lead to 89-79.
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1 month ago | 
hoopshq.com | Seth Davis |Alex Squadron
In his postgame press conference, Scott Drew jokingly referred to Proctor as “Steph Curry.” The Blue Devils put on the type of stellar performance their passionate fan base has come to expect. When they crank up the intensity on defense and get rolling, they look unbeatable. Trailing by one with just under eight minutes left in the first half and star Cooper Flagg, a 6-foot-9 freshman forward, dealing with foul trouble, Duke went on a 24-6 run to take a commanding 47-30 advantage into the break.
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1 month ago | 
hoopshq.com | Seth Davis |Alex Squadron
A majority of the Gators’ wins this season have come easy, but they were tested against UConn. They trailed 61-58 with less than four minutes remaining before 6-foot-4 senior guard Walter Clayton Jr. took over. To that point, the All-American had scored just 15 points and turned the ball over five times, but he delivered when it mattered most. Clayton nailed two huge three-pointers and hit a pair of free throws amid a 12-3 run that allowed Florida to pull away.
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1 month ago | 
hoopshq.com | Seth Davis |Alex Squadron
“His confidence has grown a lot during the season,” 6-foot-4 senior guard Jayden Nunn tells Hoops HQ about Edgecombe. “Even during the offseason, I saw it in him. I knew he was capable of doing way more. I knew his confidence was going to grow. And he’s very mature for his age. To take that leadership role and want the ball at the end and make the free throws — we trusted him to close the game out, for sure.” Baylor’s clash with Duke will feature several prominent NBA draft prospects.
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1 month ago | 
hoopshq.com | Seth Davis |Eden Laase |Alex Squadron
RALEIGH, N.C. — With just over 12 minutes left in the first half of Duke’s 93-49 rout of Mount St. Mary’s in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament, Blue Devils star Cooper Flagg cut backdoor, caught a pass in stride, took two giant steps and elevated for a powerful slam. What ankle injury?
