Heartbreak to hallelujah: How Duke basketball broke through to return to Final Four
A somber plane ride home from Dallas allowed for deep thoughts, as Duke’s basketball team let the pain of an upset loss and a stunning NCAA Tournament exit wash over them.
The next morning, Jon Scheyer walked into Nina King’s office determined such a thing would not happen this season.
The Blue Devils’ journey, from a 76-64 loss to N.C. State in the NCAA Tournament’s South Region final on March 31, 2024, to Saturday night’s 85-65 throttling of Alabama in the East Regional final to send Duke to the Final Four, took an entire year to complete.
But, without question, seeing their neighborhood rival frolicking off to Phoenix, basking in the glow of unexpected success and a national spotlight, inspired the Blue Devils and became the genesis of this spectacular season.
“That was tough,” King, Duke’s athletics director, said Saturday night amid the on-court celebration at the Prudential Center, contrasting the emotions from a year earlier in the Elite Eight loss to N.C. State. “We had a plane ride to think about it, and he certainly did, and he just kind of already set a plan in motion for this year. We watched it happen just now. So it’s pretty amazing. Still another week to go, but to get here is absolutely to that point.”
Duke (35-3) rolls into San Antonio on a 15-game winning streak. The Blue Devils entered the NCAA Tournament ranked No. 1 in the Associated Press Top 25, and was the No. 2 national seed in the field behind only Auburn.
These Blue Devils wear the same uniforms as last season’s version that went 27-9, but this is a different team, constructed to be better than that group and with only guard Tyrese Proctor returning from the players who lost to N.C. State in 2024.
Saturday night, with Duke handily in front of Alabama, Proctor found himself wide open near the 3-point line and across the court from the Blue Devils bench. He caught freshman Kon Knueppel’s pass, set his feet and drilled the 3-pointer with 1:09 left before holding up three fingers on each hand and smiling to the cheering crowd and he skipped and leaped backward.
The relief in Proctor’s mind and heart overflowed, especially considering he missed every shot he took and went scoreless in that loss to N.C. State a year earlier.
As the game’s final seconds ticked down, Proctor found himself in front of Duke’s bench where he and Scheyer shared an embrace.
“I love him,” Proctor said. “We’ve been through so much together, and I don’t think I could put into words the emotions that we had together. Last year, obviously, the way it ended wasn’t how we wanted. And just having the trust in him and him putting all his trust in me, just being able to lead these guys has been huge.”
Proctor scored 17 points in this Elite Eight game, trailing only Knueppel’s 21 points for Duke. Freshman Cooper Flagg, the all-American forward named the East Regional’s most outstanding player, scored 16 points. Another freshman, 7-2 center Khaman Maluach, added 14.
So much new talent now surrounds Proctor and sophomore guard Caleb Foster, who didn’t play in last season’s NCAA Tournament due to a broken foot but yet is the only other experienced Blue Devil in the playing rotation. That was by design, a product of Scheyer’s reaction to the N.C. State loss that robbed last season’s team of a Final Four berth.
Scheyer’s moment of reflection and celebration with Proctor was cathartic
“I think that’s part of what college basketball is all about,” Scheyer said. “Unfortunately, I know in my playing career, coaching career, I failed before succeeding. Again, I don’t want to call Elite Eight a failure. Elite Eight is a special thing to be in this game.
“For Tyrese in that moment, I think the maturity that he’s shown, his preparation throughout the summer. And we focused a lot of what we do on being ready to be at your best when your best is required. And this isn’t a best out of seven. It’s a one game shot you have at this.”
A year earlier, that one-game shot proved too difficult for Duke to handle. This time, with Flagg and the freshman star players, with Proctor and Foster, plus three veteran transfers in Sion James, Maliq Brown and Mason Gillis, the Blue Devils led start to finish.
They manhandled Alabama’s famed offense, which went from making an NCAA Tournament record 25 3-pointers on Thursday, to hitting just 8 of 32 against Duke.
“It’s a credit to our guys for not getting spooked by the 25 threes,” Scheyer said, “because it can spook you where you’re so spread, but obviously where you still have to contest because they can go, like that. So I think it’s a credit to our guys.”
This time Duke is just flat better team the teams they play. The Blue Devils played like that they knew that, too, grabbing the lead for good when Flagg swished in a 3-pointer for the game’s first points.
“Couldn’t be more proud of the team as a whole,” Scheyer said. “Their attitudes the whole season, from day one, I think this group has been different. They make fun of me. I keep telling them, don’t change. Don’t change, keep being them.”
The memory of last season’s loss now takes a backseat to the pleasantries the Blue Devils earned the right to do on Saturday night after beating Alabama.
Of course, now they want more.
“We’re not done yet,” Proctor said. “We want to get a sixth banner.”
This story was originally published March 30, 2025 at 10:16 AM.