The NCAA basketball tournament is guaranteed to bring excitement each year. For fans in Maine, that is sure to reach a whole new level this year with one of their own at the center of the March Madness stage.
Cooper Flagg is the best player on one of the best teams in the country, and he and his Duke Blue Devils are starting the tournament surrounded by a few unknowns — the most notable being the exact condition of Flagg’s left ankle after a sprain last week.
March Madness always brings its share of knowns and unknowns. That’s part of what makes it such an unpredictable and enjoyable experience. Fans can expect greatness in the next couple weeks, but it’s not always clear from whom.
Upsets are a given. Jubilation and despair are guaranteed. Madness reigns supreme.
Given that, here are a few things we know and don’t know about Flagg and his Duke team as they head into the tournament.
What we know: The goal is for Flagg to play Friday
Duke Coach John Scheyer told ESPN to start the week that the goal is for Flagg to play in Duke’s tournament opener on Friday.
“Hopefully he can start to progress starting tomorrow with doing some on-court work and then build up to where he can practice later in the week,” Scheyer said in that Sunday interview. “So our goal is for Friday, no question about it. I know that’s his goal as well. We’re just gonna progress in the right way and still be smart about not doing too much in the beginning of the week.”
We also know that Scheyer said X-rays were negative after Flagg sprained his left ankle last week during the Atlantic Coast Conference, and that Duke and the ACC told the NCAA selection committee that Flagg will be available for March Madness.
The expectation seems to be that Flagg is going to play. But until there is definitive word about Flagg’s status for Friday, it is not 100 percent certain yet whether the freshman will suit up for the opening round, or how much game action he could see if he does.
What we don’t know: Who Duke will play in in first round
The Blue Devils will be playing at 2:50 p.m. on Friday close to home in Raleigh, North Carolina. They are a No. 1 seed and will be playing a No. 16 seed. Only two No. 16 teams have ever won in these lopsided opening-round matchups, most recently in 2023 when Fairleigh Dickinson knocked out Purdue.
American University and Mount St. Mary’s will be battling it out in a play-in game for the right to take on Duke. The American Eagles secured an automatic bid to the tournament by winning the Patriot League Conference championship, and the Mount St. Mary’s Mountaineers did the same by winning the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference.
With or without Flagg, Duke will be a heavy favorite in the first round.
What we know: Flagg had a monster season
Cooper Flagg did something during the regular season that no one in the ACC had accomplished in 25 years. He led his team in all five of the major statistical categories — points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks.
That impressive campaign led to Flagg winning the ACC player of the year and rookie of the year honors. He was also named to the conference all-defensive team and set a record with 12 Rookie of the Week honors in the ACC this year.
“His competitiveness is what fuels him. And his will to win just makes him so much better,” Flagg’s longtime player development coach Matt MacKenzie told the Bangor Daily News last week after those awards were announced. “So he can be having an off shooting night but he’s going to find areas where he can impact the game in other ways.”
Flagg remains the odds-on favorite to be named the player of the year in college basketball, and is expected to be the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft. He was named a unanimous pick for the Associated Press All-America Team on Tuesday.
Despite losing their points, rebounds, assists, steal and blocks leader for most of the ACC tournament, the Blue Devils still managed to win the conference tournament over the weekend.
What we don’t know: Can he repeat family history?
Right now, there is only one member of the Flagg family who has won an NCAA tournament game. Flagg’s mom, Kelly Flagg, already has an NCAA tourney win under her belt as a key part of the 1998-99 University of Maine women’s team. That’s the only NCAA basketball tournament win in school history, something Cooper’s twin brother Ace will have a chance to add to when he joins the Black Bears next season.
For now, it’s Cooper’s turn to try and build on the family history. In an interview with the Bangor Daily News on Monday, Kelly Flagg made it clear that this is a record she’s OK seeing broken.
What we know: Maine has never seen this before
Kelly Flagg also said this week that Cooper “has sort of broken the mold for what can happen for a kid from Maine.” There’s no debate about that.
Never before has an NCAA tournament started with a kid from Maine at the center of the action like this. Never before has a kid from Maine so drastically changed the definition of what’s possible, and had that message reverberate throughout the state as seen during the Maine high school basketball tournament.
Take Quinn Pelletier, the 8th grader from Madawaska who scored 43 points in a high school game. Pelletier, who was voted MVP of the BDN’s Class C all tournament team, said that Cooper and Ace Flagg’s success “definitely shows all the kids from Maine here that there really is a chance for us, and gives us a boost of confidence.”
We don’t know what exactly the tournament will hold for Cooper Flagg, but we know that he’s already redefined expectations for kids across Maine.
