On Sunday afternoon, Baylor and Duke clashed in the East Regional in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Scott Drew and the Baylor Bears faced off against Jon Scheyer and the Duke Blue Devils in the second round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament. The pair traded blows throughout the first half until Duke started to pull away. They entered the halftime break up by 17 points and never looked back, advancing to the Sweet 16 with the win.
With that, here are the top three takeaways from Duke’s 89-66 win over the Bears.
Norchad’s Fouls
While it’s not as simple as saying, “Norchad Omier without foul trouble wins Baylor the game,” it’s fair to say that his status played a factor in the outcome. The senior forward picked up three first-half fouls, severely limiting his minutes.
Omier led the group in scoring in the first half but could not play his usual brand of basketball due to foul trouble. He started the second half for Baylor, and the group cut Duke’s lead by 6.
Unfortunately, he would pick up his fourth foul with 14:33 to play in the second half, but Scott Drew elected to let him play through it. In the end, Omier finished with 15 points, nine rebounds, and four fouls.
Just Too Much
For a team that’s had to deal with an astronomical amount of hype and expectations this year, the Duke Blue Devils continue to live up to it.
On Sunday, Duke had the better team from start to finish, with an advantage at just about every spot on the court. Three players reached double figures in the game: Cooper Flagg, Tyrese Procter, and Kon Knuepple, who combined for 55 points.
With the win, Duke added another victory to their incredible stat of 11 games this season with a 30+ point win.
NBA Future
While Baylor fans went home disappointed with an early loss in the 2025 NCAA Tournament, college basketball fans worldwide got a treat with the matchup between Duke and the Bears.
Two impact freshmen, Cooper Flagg and VJ Edgecombe, were as good as advertised, going toe-to-toe in the Round of 32. Though there has been some consternation about the two players declaring for the NBA Draft or returning to college, the pair are both expected to hear their names called within the first five picks of the draft.
Recently, Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman listed Flagg and Edgecombe as the first and third picks in the 2025 NBA Draft, with Flagg selected by the Jazz and Edgecombe by the Hornets.
