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Duke’s Cooper Flagg Given New Nickname During Final Four Game vs. Houston

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Michael Gallagher | Last updated Apr 5, 2025 11:46 PM ET

Entering Saturday’s men’s Final Four matchup between No. 1-seeded Duke and No. 1-seeded Houston, all eyes were on Blue Devils freshman phenom and newly crowned National Player of the Year Cooper Flagg.

The 6-foot-9 forward has been one of the top performers in the NCAA Tournament so far, averaging 19.5 points, 7.8 rebounds, 5.3 assists, and 1.8 blocks per game through four contests.

Though he got off to a bit of a slow start against Houston on Saturday, Flagg reminded everyone why he’s considered the best player in college basketball with a thunderous slam dunk 12:45 into the first half that put Duke up 12-8.

The moment brought the capacity crowd at the Alamodome to its feet, and the Duke official X account even posted photos of the dunk and gave Flagg a coy new nickname to go along with them.

“APRIL COOP ,” @DukeMBB tweeted.

APRIL COOP pic.twitter.com/lQCSqNKx6Y
— Duke Men’s Basketball (@DukeMBB) April 6, 2025

Though Flagg had just eight points in the first half, he turned it on in the second.

The freshman star had a game-high 27 points along with seven rebounds, four assists, three blocks, two steals, and three made 3-pointers at time of publication. Duke had a 66-59 lead with 1:14 left in regulation.

It was the second time in five NCAA Tournament games and the 16th time this season that Flagg had passed the 20-point mark.

Flagg has had quite the accomplished freshman season, winning several awards including National College Player of the Year, ACC Player of the Year, ACC Rookie of the Year, NABC Freshman of the Year, plus the Lute Olson, Julius Erving, and Wayman Tisdale awards.

Additionally, Flagg was also named a consensus first-team All-American and was a first-team All-ACC selection, an ACC All-Defensive Team selection, and an ACC All-Freshman Team selection.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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