Cooper Flagg vs Johni Broome: How did the Wooden Award frontrunners fare at epic Duke vs Auburn battle?
The No. 9 Duke Blue Devils toppled the No. 2 Auburn Tigers 84-78 on Wednesday thanks to the remarkable play of freshman star Cooper Flagg. This was Flagg's first head-to-head matchup against fellow 2024-25 John Wooden Award rival Johni Broome and the two did not disappoint with their performances.
Playing for 38 minutes, Flagg produced a double-double of 22 points and 11 rebounds to go along with four assists, three steals and two blocks. While he didn't hit from his four 3-point attempts, Flagg's all-around stat line was aided by him going 7-of-18 from the field and 8-of-12 from the charity stripe to lead Duke to the victory.
Meanwhile, fifth-year standout Broome also had a double-double of 20 points and 12 boards while chipping in three assists and a block as well. Broome went 8-of-18 with his field goal attempts and did not make a 3 as well in 37 minutes of play, before fouling out after a hard-fought try.
Both Flagg and Broome were going at it since tip-off, as the latter quickly followed up the former's layup with his own to give Auburn an early 7-2 lead. The Blue Devils were then forced to an early timeout as the Tigers momentarily led by 10. As Flagg and Broome took control of their team's boards through the quarter, they both gave themselves chances to score and capitalized on it.
As Duke got within one point at the 7:40 mark (22-21), Broome converted on a lay-in right from his team's timeout. With Auburn hanging on to their tight lead, Flagg's stability on offense and defense would help give Duke the edge. Their neck-and-neck scoring would result in the Blue Devils holding a seven-point advantage, 43-36, to end the first half.
Opening the second half, the senior Auburn swingman immediately scored on a five-footer but was then matched by the first-year forward's make, 45-38. At this point, Broome was doing all he could as Duke started to pull away, getting ahead by as much as 12 points at the 17:38 mark with yet another Flagg conversion.
Through the 12-minute mark, Broome was keeping his team within striking distance, including a much-needed sequence of three consecutive makes from him. As it was a back-and-fourth affair throughout the second half, Flagg and Co. would eventually maintain their lead.
Cooper Flagg would then ice the game with two free throws with 15 seconds left in the game as Broome's efforts to tie the game or take the lead came up short with him fouling out – his final foul being on Flagg. The Blue Devils would take the win over the Tigers, 84-78 in the end.
Here are the box scores from both Flagg and Broome:
The race for 2024-2025 John Wooden Award heats up
Throughout November, likely one-and-done freshman Cooper Flagg has been the favorite to bring home the prestigious 2024-25 John Wooden Award.
Broome, who is in his last year of college hoops, had his own thing to say about the rankings. Just last week, he overcame Flagg as the favorite after Auburn's double-digit 90-76 win against Memphis.
With how toe-to-toe these two are going, there is no doubt they'll be gunning for the award and even potentially go against each other in the NBA one day.
Flagg and the Blue Devils will look to add another win on Sunday against Louisville while Broome and the Tigers will try to recuperate on the same day versus Richmond.
Who do you think will win the 2024-25 John Wooden Award this season? Will it be on of Cooper Flagg or Johni Broome? Will it be someone else entirely? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.