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Duke defeats Gonzaga, heads to first Final Four since 2010

Duke v Gonzaga

Getty Images

Getty Images

Duke became the last team to put its ticket to Indianapolis with a 66-52 win over Gonzaga on Sunday evening at NRG Stadium in Houston. It’ll be the Blue Devils first Final Four appearance since 2010.

With under five minutes to play, Kyle Wiltjer missed a point-blank layup, which would have tied the score at 53-all. From there Duke Justise Winslow went on a 7-0 run to open up the lead for the Blue Devils. Winslow, the Houston native, capped that spurt when he forced Wiltjer into a missed shot and then drilled a 3-pointer on the other end to give Duke a 60-51 lead.

The Bulldogs went the final 6:40 without a field goal.

Winslow had a team-high 16 points. Tyus Jones had 15 points and six assists while Matt Jones hit four of Duke’s eight 3-pointers en route to 14 points.

Gonzaga was led by Wiltjer with 16.

For Coach K, this marks the 12th time he’ll take Duke to the Final Four, tying him with John Wooden for the most all time. Mark Few, however, comes up one-game short of the program’s first Final Four appearance.

Duke will face Michigan State, the No. 7 seed out of the East Region, in next week’s Final Four. The Blue Devils defeated the Spartans, 81-71, back in November at the Champions Classic in Chicago.

Follow @terrence_payne