'So good for us': Young emerges as Duke's unlikely — and invaluable — hero in Sweet 16 upset of Houston

DALLAS—The first three minutes of Duke’s Sweet 16 game against Houston could not have gone worse. 

It was deja vu all over again for the Blue Devils, who saw an ultra-aggressive team pounce on them and open an 8-0 lead before they could catch their breath — an eerie reminder of last year’s second-round loss to Tennessee. Head coach Jon Scheyer needed an answer, and he needed it fast.

Enter Ryan Young, a sixth-year graduate student known for his hustle — but certainly not his athleticism. The unlikeliest of heroes against what was the most physically imposing team the Blue Devils have faced this season, Young helped settle the team’s nerves and bring Duke back into the game. At the end of the first half, the Blue Devils had built a one-point lead, and Young was +12 in the box score. By the end of the game, he was a team-high +18.

In a game decided by just three points, that is not only remarkable, but invaluable.

Scheyer’s bench has thinned significantly since freshman guard Caleb Foster suffered an ankle injury against Wake Forest, ruling him out for the rest of the season. That may be an understatement; in its last five games heading into the Sweet 16, Duke ranked 361st out of 362 Division-I teams in bench points per game, per CBBAnalytics.

Stars win games in March, and the Blue Devils’ trio of senior Jeremy Roach and sophomores Kyle Filipowski and Tyrese Proctor made some huge plays down the stretch against Houston. But a team cannot solely rely on its top players, especially against a tire-you-down squad like the Cougars. Duke badly needed one of its role players to step up, and Young answered the call.

“We wouldn't have won that game without Ryan,” Filipowski said after the game.

“His defense, his physicality to match what they do. I thought that was a big difference in the game,” Scheyer added.