Duke established itself as arguably the best team in the entire country over the course of a dominant regular season, picking up non-conference wins against the likes of Auburn and Arizona before running roughshod through the ACC. But on the eve of the NCAA Tournament, a little doubt began to creep in: All-world freshman Cooper Flagg had missed most of the ACC Tournament due to a sprained ankle, and while he seemed unlikely to miss March Madness, how effective he'd be was an open question.
It's not an open question anymore. Flagg looked just like his old self in his Big Dance debut, filling up the stat sheet with 14 points, seven rebounds and four assists as the Blue Devils wiped 16-seed Mount St. Mary's off the face of the Earth with a 93-49 win. The smothering defense, the multi-faceted offense, the comical scoreline — this was exactly the Duke team we've gotten to know over the last few months, and the march to the Final Four is back on course.
Who does Duke play in the second round of the NCAA Tournament?
After an impressive opening win, Duke is now on to second-round action on Sunday. Their opponent? The 8-seed Baylor Bears, who held on for a win over 9-seed Mississippi State earlier on Friday afternoon.
This isn't one of Scott Drew's vintage Baylor teams, but they can't be entirely overlooked, either. The biggest reason why is guard VJ Edgecombe, one of the top prospects in the upcoming NBA Draft and one of the most explosive athletes in this entire tournament. Edgecombe got off to a slow start against the Bulldogs, but he took over late, and he's capable of going on a heater if his improving jump shot is on.
Of course, Baylor is still the 8-seed in the East region for a reason; the Bears went just 10-10 in the Big 12 this season and have an overall record of just 20-14. Like most Drew teams, they really struggle controlling the defensive glass, a weakness that the far bigger Blue Devils should be able to exploit. Duke's size should be more than sufficient to shut off Baylor's water on the perimeter, and a Bears defense that was only middle-of-the-pack in conference play shouldn't offer too miuch resistance.
How many times has Duke reached the Sweet 16?
If Duke does take care of business on Sunday, they'll be on to the Sweet 16 for the 33rd time in program history. Who they'll play is still an open question, as both 4-seed Arizona and 5-seed Oregon won't play their openers until later on Friday evening. Duke already has a win over the Wildcats this season, while the Ducks are always dangerous this time of year under Dana Altman.