Cal Bested At No. 3 Duke

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) – Cooper Flagg scored 27 points and No. 3 Duke extended its home winning streak to 14 games with a 78-57 victory over California on Wednesday night.

Tyrese Proctor scored 18 points and Khaman Maluach added 10 points and 12 rebounds for the Blue Devils (21-3, 13-1 ACC), who rebounded from Saturday's loss to Clemson that snapped a 16-game winning streak.

Jeremiah Wilkinson scored 21 points, Rytis Petraitis added 11 points and Andrej Stojakovic 10 points for the Golden Bears (12-13, 5-9). Wilkinson, who’s 14.0 points per game trails only Flagg among ACC freshmen this season, shot 8 of 17 from the floor and 4 of 8 from beyond the arc on the way to his seventh 20-point effort of the season.

Flagg shot 8 for 14 from the field and was perfect on nine free throws for Duke, which led 19-9 less than 9½ minutes in the game. Flagg scored 13 points in the first half, helping the Blue Devils to a 38-23 lead at the break.

Back-to-back possessions with 3-pointers from 7-foot-2 center Maluach and Flagg pushed Duke to a 28-15 lead. The margin never dipped to single digits the rest of the way. It was just Maluach’s second 3-point basket and eighth attempt from beyond the arc this season.

Cal shot 35.1% from the field, below the ACC-low of 38.5% that Duke had allowed opponents entering the game.

UP NEXT

Cal travels to Atlanta to face Georgia Tech. Tipoff is at 1 p.m. PT Saturday at McCamish Pavilion. ACC Network will televise the contest.

SUPPORT THE BEARS

Tickets for the 2024-25 campaign can be purchased by visiting CalBears.com/Tickets, calling 800-GO-BEARS (462-3277) or emailing goldstandard@berkeley.edu. Fans can support the Golden Bears through the Cal Men's Basketball Excellence Initiative or the California Legends Collective.