Controversial technical foul call favors Duke in Elite Eight contest vs. NC State

A controversial technical foul called in the second half against NC State briefly gave Duke some momentum and the chance to cut into an eight-point lead with a trip to the Final Four on the line.

Following a dislodged ball that appeared to come off Duke big man Kyle Filipowski before hitting the top of the backboard, NC State coach Kevin Keatts stepped onto the floor toward midcourt to question the call to officials.

They instantly hit him with a technical foul for stepping outside of the coaches’ box, gifting Duke a pair of free throws while they were trailing 48-40. The Blue Devils made both free throws but then failed to score on the ensuing possession, and the Wolfpack was quick to surge back down the other end of the floor.

kyle filipowski draws the foul, kevin keatts technical foul pic.twitter.com/y2ucKMMkRl

— ◇ (@d9Hoops) March 31, 2024

You can watch the tournament live on Prime Video, add on your favorite channels and watch at home or on your phone and laptop at work!

Guard Michael O’Connell buried a 3-point attempt to stretch the lead back out to 51-42, a somewhat comfortable margin given there were only seven minutes left to play.

Still, the sequence stung for the Wolfpack because it appeared the out-of-bounds call was incorrect in the first place; Keatts had ample reason to argue the call.

In any case, NC State remains in the lead as the game goes down to the wire.

Compounding matters for Duke, Filipowski fouled out with about five minutes to play. He finished the day with 11 points and nine rebounds, just one rebound shy of a double-double. That’s bad news for the Blue Devils, too, who have struggled to slow down NC State big man DJ Burns.

Burns had a game-high 23 points on 11-of-16 shooting at the under-four media timeout in the second half. He also had four rebounds in the contest.