After Cooper Flagg’s gruesome injury in Duke’s ACC quarterfinal win over Georgia Tech on Thursday, Blue Devils coach Jon Scheyer initially said the star freshman was a “longshot” to play Friday.

Duke men's basketball finds itself two wins away from claiming its second ACC tournament championship in the last three years. But to play for the title, the top-ranked Blue Devils will first need to take down rival North Carolina on Friday night in the ACC semifinals at the Spectrum Center — likely without leading scorer Cooper Flagg.

Duke’s Cooper Flagg, the ACC’s player and rookie of the year, appeared to injure his left ankle Thursday during the top-ranked Blue Devils’ ACC tournament opener in Charlotte. Flagg came down awkwardly on the foot of Georgia Tech’s Baye Ndongo while pulling down a rebound late in the first half.