Selection Sunday just two days away, but there’s plenty of college basketball action to keep up with on conference tournament weekend.
Top-ranked Duke returned to action on Friday without Cooper Flagg after the potential NBA Draft No. 1 pick sprained his ankle on Thursday. Without Flagg, the Blue Devils hung on to beat North Carolina 74-71 in the ACC semifinals after nearly coughing up a 24-point lead.
UNC had a chance to take the lead in the final seconds, trailing by one with two free throws. But the first missed and the second was waved off for a lane violation, paving the way for the Duke victory.
Beyond that, there are plenty of other noteworthy games on tap. Auburn, Michigan State, Houston and St. John’s all won Friday as they all vie for a potential No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament.
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Here are all the games we’ll be keeping a close eye on Friday. (Scroll for live updates.)
Friday’s best games:
ACC
No. 1 Duke 74, North Carolina 71 No. 13 Louisville vs. No. 10 Clemson, 9:30 p.m. | ESPN or ESPN 2
No. 6 St. John’s 79, No. 25 Marquette 63 Creighton vs. UConn, 9 p.m. | Fox
Big Ten
No. 7 Michigan State 74, No. 23 Oregon 64 No. 18 Wisconsin 86, UCLA 70 No. 11 Maryland 88, No. 24 Illinois 65 No. 20 Purdue vs. No. 22 Michigan, 9 p.m. | Big Ten Network
Best of the rest
No. 16 Memphis 83, Wichita State 80 Boise State vs. New Mexico, 9:30 p.m. | CBSSN
Live85 updates
UConn trailing late
The Huskies are down 6 with just a minute left in the game, but they’re still fighting.
Louisville in control vs. Clemson
Meanwhile, in the ACC tourney, Louisville has opened up a healthy lead of its own in the second half against Clemson. It’s a defensive battle and the Cardinals are up double digits with just over 12 minutes left. The winner of that game will play top-ranked Duke on Saturday night.
Caleb Love is feeling it
The Arizona star started the second half just like he did the first: Drilling 3-pointers. He has two more in the first few minutes (23 points total) and the Wildcats are up double digits on Texas Tech.
Huskies teasing a comeback
Creighton is still leading in the second half of the Big East semifinal, but UConn isn’t going quietly. The Huskies are on a 12-0 run and back in the game.
Halftime: Arizona 47, Texas Tech 39
Caleb Love has been the focal point as usual for the Wildcats so far. He’s 6-for-8 from the field in the first half (including 3-for-4 from deep) and has 17 points. Most of that was in the first 7 minutes of the game.
Michigan pulling away early in second half
The Wolverines are on a tear coming out of the break and have opened up a double-digit lead on Purdue. The winner of this game will play Maryland on Saturday.
Cooper Flagg won’t play in ACC title game Saturday
Duke coach Jon Scheyer said after the Blue Devils’ win that Flagg will miss the ACC tournament title game.
Jon Scheyer told reporters postgame that Duke’s Cooper Flagg (ankle) will not play in Saturday’s ACC Tournament title game. https://t.co/zApKQWPgGX
The Red Raiders have surged into the lead midway through the first half against Arizona. They’re one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the country and they’re 5-for-7 from behind the arc so far. Christian Anderson has two of them.
UK-Alabama trading blows early
The SEC quarterfinal between the Wildcats and Crimson Tide has started off with a blistering pace and both teams are shooting the ball well. It’s tied up at 14-14 at the first TV timeout.
Arizona-Texas Tech underway in Big 12 semis
The Wildcats are off to a hot start in Kansas City. If this is the first Big 12 game you’ve watched, you may be confused as to what you’re looking at. Here’s Jeff Eisenberg on the curious court choice made by Brett Yormark and Co. for the conference tournament:
Click the photo to read the story. (Scott Winters/Getty Images)
Creighton takes early lead on UConn
Dan Hurley’s Huskies had a bit of a slow start on Thursday against Villanova and it looks like they’re starting the Big East semifinal against Creighton in similar fashion. The Bluejays are out to an early lead.
FINAL: Duke 74, UNC 71
An off-balance desperation shot clanks wide and Duke will advance by the skin of its teeth, and the sole of Jae’Lyn Withers’ sneaker. What a bizarre ending to a great comeback.
Kneuppel makes both, but UNC gets the ball into Duke territory and calls a timeout with 2.5 seconds left. Tar Heels aren’t dead yet, but they have to avoid a foul.
UNC fouls Kon Kneuppel, Duke’s best FT shooter, with 2.8 seconds left.
Good lord. UNC’s Jae’Lyn Withers gets called for a lane violation and Lubin’s make on the second doesn’t count. UNC has to foul again. That is an emotional crusher.
Hoo boy, Lubin misses the first one. Shooting for OT now.
Double-whammy for Duke. Ven-Allen Lubin draws a foul with four seconds left and will get two free throws, and Khaman Maluach fouls out. Here’s UNC shooting for the lead.
Proctor misses the first of the one-and-one and it’s UNC basketball, 72-71, with 17.6 seconds left. This is March.
UNC fouls with 21.7 seconds left, Tyrese Proctor to the line.