CHARLOTTE, N.C. — (AP) — Kon Knueppel scored 28 points as No. 1 Duke overcame injuries to star Cooper Flagg and Maliq Brown to beat Georgia Tech 78-70 on Thursday and advance to the ACC Tournament semifinals.
Isaiah Evans scored 14 points on four 3-pointers and Khaman Maluach added 14 points and nine rebounds for the Blue Devils (29-3), who have won nine straight.
Flagg appeared to land awkwardly on Baye Ndongo’s foot as he came down with a rebound late in the first half. The ACC player of the year retreated to the Duke bench and punched a seat in frustration. After being helped to the locker room, Flagg returned to the Duke bench in the second half without a boot on his foot. He did not return to the game.
Brown went down with a shoulder injury in the first half.
Duncan Powell led Georgia Tech (17-16) with 24 points.
Duke missed its first 13 shots from beyond the arc and fell behind 26-12, matching the season's largest deficit. They trailed 26-17 when Flagg left the game, but cut the lead to five at halftime. Duke pushed its lead to seven early in the second half when Tyrese Proctor stole a pass and delivered a high-flying one-handed dunk in transition.
Georgia Tech: The Yellow Jackets bench was outscored 21-6.
Duke: The Blue Devils showed they have some firepower without Flagg and Brown on the court. After missing its first 13 3s, Duke went 7 of 17 the rest of the way.
Knueppel drove, scored and drew a foul for a 3-point play with about five minutes left in the game to put Duke up by 11.
Georgia Tech was outscored 28-12 to start the second half.
Georgia Tech can hope for an NIT bid. Duke will face the North Carolina/Wake Forest winner on Friday.
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