Cooper Flagg Shines as the Wooden Award Winner

Duke’s rising star, Cooper Flagg, made history on Saturday by becoming just the fourth freshman ever to clinch the prestigious John R. Wooden Award for the most outstanding player in men’s college basketball. Flagg narrowly surpassed Auburn’s Johni Broome in the competition, with Florida’s Walter Clayton Jr., Alabama’s Mark Sears, and Purdue’s Braden Smith rounding out the list of finalists.

Emerging as the frontrunner during the latter half of the season, Flagg played a pivotal role in leading Duke to clinch both the ACC regular-season and conference tournament titles. As the team prepared for Saturday’s national semifinal clash against Houston, Flagg boasted impressive stats: averaging 18.9 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game.

In January, Flagg set a remarkable ACC freshman record by scoring 42 points, along with 6 rebounds and 7 assists in a game against Notre Dame. Throughout that month, he maintained stellar averages of 25.4 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 4.9 assists per game.

Flagg joins an elite group of freshmen recipients of the Wooden Award, following the footsteps of Duke’s own Zion Williamson in 2019, Kentucky’s Anthony Davis in 2012, and Texas’ Kevin Durant in 2007.