Washington — cameron boozer Scored 18 points and finished no. 3 ruler Handed another neutral-site loss to fellow blueblood michiganKnocking off the top-ranked Wolverines 68-63 in a raucous potential Final Four preview in the nation’s capital on Saturday night.
The Wolverines had won 11 consecutive games and moved to the top of the AP Top 25 poll this week, ousting Arizona. The now-fourth-ranked Wildcats won at No. 2 Houston earlier Saturday, making it the first time since Feb. 8, 2025 that the teams ranked No. 1 and 2 in the poll lost on the same day.
With his father, former Duke and NBA star Carlos Boozer in attendance, Cameron Boozer hit a 3-pointer with 1:55 remaining to give the Blue Devils a 64–58 lead. Isaiah Evans Added 14 points for the Blue Devils (25-2), who could return to Capital One Arena in just a month for the East Regional of the NCAA Tournament.
“That was a game that didn’t feel like it was played in February,” Duke coach John Scheyer said. “It felt like a March or April game. Obviously, we have a lot of respect for Michigan, the staff and how good they are. And I thought it was just a big-time game where our guys were ready to compete at a high level.”
In the programs’ first meeting in 12 years, Duke improved to 23–8 against Michigan and 7–0 on neutral courts, a series that also includes the 1992 national title game. Michigan has not defeated Duke since December 6, 2009 in Ann Arbor.
Yaxel Lendeborg Scored 21 points for the Wolverines (25-2), who had not lost since a three-point home loss to Wisconsin on Jan. 10.
Although second-year coach Dusty May has been praised for the unselfishness of his Michigan team, Scheyer’s Blue Devils have shown more versatility on offense. Caleb Foster scored 12 points, and Patrick Ngongba II Added 11 as Duke found a soft spot in the Wolverines’ top-rated defense.
Duke, meanwhile, won the rebounding battle 41–28, as Michigan settled for a lot of one-and-done perimeter shots, going 6 of 25 from 3-point range.
“When you schedule a game like this, you don’t know what it’s going to look like after the fact, and not even prepare for it. Now we know more about our team. We’ll be better because of this game and overall,” May said. “We didn’t rebound like we should have, and we made some timely mistakes, and when you’re playing someone like Duke, they make you pay for every mistake. And they did that tonight.”
Fans chanted “Let’s go Duke!” Raised slogans. and “Let’s go blue!” For a rare must-see matchup in a city starved for meaningful basketball. ESPN’s “College GameDay” was broadcast from inside the arena during the teams’ morning shootaround, and in the hours before the game tickets for upper level seats were selling in the $600 range, with courtside seats priced at more than $6,000.
The defense had the upper hand in a spirited and physical first half, with neither team leading by more than five points. Ngongba was fouled while fighting for a rebound with 0.8 seconds left and made both free throws to give the Blue Devils a 35–33 lead at the break.
Surprisingly, the Duke was never left behind again.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
