Houston all set to pit top D against Flagg, Duke

• Myron MedcalfApr 4, 2025, 02:44 PM ET Close Covers college basketball

• Joined ESPN.com in 2011
• Graduate of Minnesota State University, Mankato

SAN ANTONIO– To advance to Monday’s national title game, Houston will have to beat Duke, the favorite to win the NCAA champion, and Cooper Flagg, the recently called Associated Press Gamer of the Year, on Saturday.But the Cougars, the best protective team in the country, believe they have a strategy to slow Flagg down.

“We feel in one’s bones we have to protect,” Joseph Tugler, the Huge 12 Protective Player of the Year who has balanced 5.5 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.9 blocks this season, stated Friday. “He’s their star player. He wants to score the ball. We’ve got to stop him. Stop him initially. We need to remove his first shot and make him a passer. Take him far from the game.”

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J’Wan Roberts, an all-Big 12 defensive group and all-Big 12 first string selection, concurred with his teammate and stated the Cougars have to make Flagg “uneasy” on Saturday via their physical style of defense.That very same design limited Tennessee to 15 points in the first half of their Elite Eight matchup with Houston on Sunday, the lowest tally in a single half for a top-two seed in NCAA competition history.”No one likes dealing with physicality, specifically when you’re playing the game of basketball,”Roberts said.” You wish to be able to get the perfect shot up. You wish to do whatever efficiently, but if somebody remains in your airspace, you’re not as comfortable as you would be [normally] When you have a group like us that takes pride in defense and limits groups to one shot the majority of the time, it’s type of hard to get into the groove of the game, particularly compared to a group that lets you be comfy. “During the NCAA competition, Flagg has actually been comfortable. He has balanced 19.5 points per

game, while linking on 42%of his shots from beyond the arc and 87 %of his totally free throw attempts. He has also balanced 7.7 rebounds and 1.7 blocks.Defending the predicted No. 1 pick in the 2025 NBA draft will require a synergy, Tugler said. He included that Houston’s goal versus any team is to frustrate the challenger by getting three stops in a row. The Cougars call that string a”kill stop.”To put themselves in that spot versus Duke, the Cougars understand they’ll have to challenge Flagg.” We need to remove his right-hand man, make him go to his spin relocation, “Tugler stated.”We need to make him earn his shot and work for it. We need to make it hard

for him and assist, assist each other out.” On Friday, it was clear that the Cougars understood the huge task ahead against a first-year talent who is arguably the best player in America. Though they appreciate Flagg and the skill set that has actually led to a multitude of postseason honors, they said they’re ready to play the same brand name of basketball that has actually assisted the group go 30-1 given that Nov. 30.”He’s an excellent player,”Milos Uzan said. “We have a great deal of regard for him. But at the end of the day, we’re going to go out there and we’re going to compete. I feel like we’re going to do whatever it takes to

get the win.”