Cougars launch comeback to beat out Duke, punching ticket to NCAA Championship

SAN ANTONIO, Texas -- The University of Houston Cougars are headed to the NCAA Championship game for the first time since 1984 after launching a late second half comeback against the storied Duke University Blue Devils on Saturday.

Up 14 with 8 1/2 minutes left, the Blue Devils improbably faded down the stretch, done in by Houston's relentless fight to stay in a game that had frequently seemed on the verge of getting away. There were missed shots and miscues. An inability to get stops. And even their reliable star - Associated Press national player of the year Cooper Flagg - couldn't save the Blue Devils on a contested late shot when they suddenly faced a late deficit.

By the final horn, the Cougars had scored the game's last nine points in the last 33 seconds for a 70-67 victory Saturday night in the second semifinal.

"It's heartbreaking, it's incredibly disappointing," third-year coach Jon Scheyer said. "There's a lot of pain that comes with this. That's what the tournament is all about."

The seeds were planted, notably with Duke leading 59-45 with 8:17 left and a chance to strengthen its grasp on the game. But Houston instead ran off 10 straight points, fittingly starting with a 3-pointer from Cryer, that changed the trajectory of the final minutes.

Duke (35-4) went from being in firm control all night to having a desperate final possession after LJ Cryer's last two free throws with 3.7 seconds left, leaving the Blue Devils only Sion James' full-court heave for a try at a tying 3 with no timeouts left. But after a deflection-forced scramble, the ball ended up in Tyrese Proctor's hands with time only for Proctor to turn and flail it toward the basket.

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The sequence that stood out was Proctor missing the front end of a 1-and-1 free throw with Duke up just one, then Flagg fouling UH's big man J'Wan Roberts while trying to reach over his box out. Roberts, who came into the game shooting 62.5%, calmly made both with 19.6 seconds left for a 68-67 lead.

The ball missed everything as the horn sounded, signaling the end of the game and the Blue Devils' chances for a sixth NCAA title run.

You would've thought you were at 3422 Cullen Boulevard at the Fertitta Center, after a sea of red-clad Cougar fans and alumni gathered to watch the team, only a few hours up the road.

Houston Mayor John Whitmire, also a proud UH alum, made his way to the Alamodome to celebrate the Coogs' triumphant victory.

The Cougars will play for the title against the No. 3 Florida Gators on Monday, marking the first meeting of the two squads this season.

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The Associated Press contributed to this report.