Duke basketball ‘more whole’ as injured center returns for win over TCU
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Ngongba returned from sore right foot and joined Duke’s NCAA Tournament rotation.
- Center logged 13 minutes and had four points, four rebounds, four assists.
- Duke controlled TCU en route to an 81-58 victory.
As Duke played the early minutes of Saturday’s NCAA Tournament game with Texas Christian, Pat Ngongba sat on the Blue Devils bench just as he had the previous five games.
The difference this time was Ngongba was in uniform and had worked up a sweat going through pregame warmups for the first time since March 7.
The protective boot he’s used on his sore right foot was gone, his scooter parked somewhere else in Bon Secours Wellness Arena.
Then Ngongba reached down and tightened his right shoe lace, signaling something different.
The 6-11 sophomore center was ready to play once again.
Ngongba played 13 minutes as Duke rolled over TCU, 81-58, his most playing time since a Blue Devils win over N.C. State on March 2.
His play was uneven as he posted a string of fours on the scoresheet: Four points, four rebounds, four assists, four turnovers and four points. He also blocked a shot.
Duke All-American Cameron Boozer said just seeing Ngongba back and available gave the Blue Devils plenty to be happy about.
“He gave us a lot of juice coming back,” Cam Boozer said. “Even just walking through. To see him out there, we all got happy, ecstatic. I almost started jumping around and stuff, just because we know how hard he works and we know how much he means to the team. We’re just super happy to have him back for sure.”
Duke kept winning while injuries healed
Duke kept winning over the past two weeks while two starters sat with foot injuries. The Blue Devils toppled rival North Carolina on March 7, the day Ngongba went through warmups but didn’t play. He even sat on the bench wearing the protective boot in the second half.
That’s also the day junior guard Caleb Foster broke a bone in his right foot during the UNC game.
The Blue Devils pressed forward, winning an ACC championship in Charlotte with both players sidelined and edging Siena, 71-65, in Thursday’s NCAA Tournament opener in Greenville.
Friday, Duke coach Jon Scheyer sounded optimistic Ngongba could return for the second-round game with No. 9 seed TCU. This had been the plan all along, but that didn’t mean it came easily.
“For Pat to come back to this game was not easy by any means,” Scheyer said. “He was fighting like crazy. He even came up to us before the first game, and just in the best interest of him, and ultimately our team also — well, we always want him back out here, but we tried to get him ready for this game.”
Duke fans happy to see Ngongba on the court
With 16:14 to play in the first half, Ngongba checked into the game. Duke fans rose to their feet and gave him a standing ovation. He had some jitters, for sure, but they quickly passed.
“It felt good,” Ngongba said. “I mean, I feel like, once I got to the (scorer’s) table, and then once I was moving out there, I was, like, ‘ah,’ and they were pretty much out the door.”
Maliq Brown remained Duke’s starting center, just as he’s been the previous five games. He turned in a strong performance with 12 points and nine rebounds, his first double-figure scoring game since he scored 15 against UNC on March 7.
Having Ngongba back to bolster the front-line depth gave Brown a different mindset.
“Just his presence on the court,” Brown said. “Just, even when I’m looking over at the bench, I just see him over there. We talked about it this morning, you know, just knowing he was gonna be able to play today. It just, it took a lot of load off everybody.”
Scheyer said the Blue Devils are “more whole with Pat being back” but they aren’t all the way there yet. Foster remains sidelined, wearing a protective boot on his healing right foot after having surgery on March 8. He celebrated the Duke win on Saturday with his teammates on the bench, bearing weight on the right foot regularly.
The original plan was for Foster to possibly return if Duke advanced to the Final Four, April 4-6 in Indianapolis. To get there, Duke needs to win two East Regional games in Washington, D.C., on Friday and Sunday.
A game with either fourth-seeded Kansas or No. 5 seed St. John’s is up next. No. 3 seed Michigan State and either No. 2 seed UConn or No. 7 seed UCLA will join them.
“Caleb’s working every day like crazy,” Scheyer said.
Duke isn’t all the way healthy, but the Blue Devils added an important piece on Saturday.
This story was originally published March 21, 2026 at 9:50 PM.