With 6:05 to play in the 77-71 Duke basketball road loss to the Clemson Tigers (19-5, 11-2 ACC) on Saturday night, the No. 2-ranked Blue Devils (20-3, 12-1 ACC) had received only four points from rookie centerpiece Cooper Flagg. The projected No. 1 draft pick was shooting 2-for-11 from the field.

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At the time, Duke faced a daunting 59-54 deficit in Littlejohn Coliseum. So, Flagg fired up his bucket-finding factory, knocking down a pair of free throws, draining a three under a minute later, and sinking a smooth jumper to give the Blue Devils a 64-63 advantage at the 3:23 mark.

Responding to a 4-0 Clemson run just over a minute later, Flagg swished another from downtown to tie the score at 67-67.

Answering another Tigers triple on their ensuing possession, the 18-year-old Maine native flew into the lane for a huge offensive rebound, drawing a foul and hitting one of two attempts at the charity stripe, all while dealing with cramping in his calves.

With 58 ticks remaining and the Blue Devils trailing by two at 70-68, Flagg launched from long distance yet again, drilling the “trifecta” in front of ESPN legend Dick Vitale in his return to the broadcast stage.

That put the Blue Devils on top, 71-70, while trying to cement their 17th straight win behind the freshman sensation’s clutch brilliance.

However, 14 seconds later, Clemson’s Chase Hunter delivered a difficult layup to hand Flagg & Co. a 72-71 deficit. Duke graduate guard Sion James missed in traffic, and Tigers big man Viktor Lakhin’s 1-for-2 clip at the foul line with 21 seconds to play padded the home team’s lead at 73-71.

After Jon Scheyer directed his unit during a Duke timeout, Cooper Flagg drove to the hoop but slipped on the court and fell on his back near the baseline, resulting in a travel violation with 14.7 seconds left on the clock — all eerily similar to the Blue Devils’ only two other losses to date back in November.

A pair of free throws on the other end by Clemson’s Chase Hunter gave the Tigers a 75-71 lead with 14.0 remaining.

Hunter then blocked Duke junior guard Tyrese Proctor’s aggressive driving attempt with 7.9 ticks left and sealed the upset with two more swished freebies.

Clemson fans stormed the court:

Duke basketball will look to bounce back when the Blue Devils host the Cal Golden Bears (12-12, 5-8 ACC) at 9 p.m. ET Wednesday (ACC Network).

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