COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP/97.1 The Ticket) -- Duke has survived.
The No. 1 overall seed rallied in the final seconds to beat UCF 77-76 and reach the Sweet 16 in the East Region.
The Knights had two shots for the win on the final possession, but B.J. Taylor missed a driving shot that rolled off the rim. The same then happened to Aubrey Dawkins' last-ditch tip-in attempt, securing the win for Duke.
DUKE HANGS ON --#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/JegO2wFY2q
— NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness)
March 24, 2019 Duke trailed 74-70 late before pushing back ahead on RJ Barrett's putback of a missed free throw by Zion Williamson.
UCF missed an opportunity to take a six-point lead late in the game when they missed an alley-oop attempt in transition with just under 2:00 left. On the other end, Duke answered with a 3-pointer and pulled within a point.
Williamson had 32 points for Duke, while Dawkins had 32 for UCF.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
