TUCSON, Ariz. – Seconds after No. 12 Duke players ran onto the field for pregame introductions at the McKale Center on Friday night, someone in the crowd threw a can of beer in their direction.

That moment didn’t set the mostly positive and lively atmosphere in the arena, where Cooper Flagg’s 24-point effort led the Blue Devils to a 69-55 victory over No. 17 Arizona.

But throughout the game, security forces and local police gathered near Duke’s tunnel and the team’s family and friends section over concerns that more objects were about to be thrown, sources told ESPN. The same security and police personnel also entered the Arizona student section at halftime to address the behavior of at least one fan.

Duke coach Jon Scheyer said he didn’t notice the chaos off the field, a metaphor for the way his team responded in the first real road game of the season.

“I didn’t even see that,” Scheyer said afterward about the beer can incident. “First of all, I thought the environment and the atmosphere were top notch. I mean, the people were respectful. I thought there was just a big college basketball crowd, but at the end of the day, the crowd has no control over how you defend, how you sprint back on defense, how you take care of the ball.”

More than 14,000 people gathered for the highly anticipated matchup involving two teams that had not met in Tucson since the 1980s. The notable personalities in the crowd gave the game a prime-time atmosphere. Flagg, the projected No. 1 pick in the 2025 NBA draft, and his teammates faced an Arizona squad led by Caleb Love, a preseason All-American.

Mike Bibby and Gilbert Arenas, a pair of former NBA stars who started some of Arizona’s best teams, sat in the front row. Phoenix Suns star Bradley Beal found his place next to theirs early in the game, and Beal’s teammates Tyus Jones and Grayson Allen – who starred on Duke’s 2014-15 national title team – were behind the Blue Devils’ bench.

Bryce James, son of LeBron James and a prospect in the 2025 recruiting class, also attended the game with his mother, Savannah James.

Flagg delivered his best performance this season in another high-profile game, more than a week after scoring multiple goals in the final seconds of a loss to Kentucky in the Champions Classic in Atlanta. Arizona appeared to contain him in the first half, but Flagg dominated after the break, scoring 16 points.

Flagg, who shot 10-of-22 from the field, also finished with 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks and 1 steal.

“He’s long, athletic and can finish over a lot of bodies,” Arizona’s Jaden Bradley, who led his team with 18 points, said of Flagg. “He’s just super athletic. I feel like we contained him well in the first half. I think we just deviated from the game plan and then we didn’t talk, we didn’t communicate as a group and he found openings .” in our defense he creates mismatch problems for them. We get a smaller guard, he can take us inside and use his strength, his height advantage. We get a bigger guy on him, he can play fast, play fast and be able to shoot over the top or get past him.

As his team entered halftime, Scheyer said, “We’ve been here before,” referring to Duke’s halftime lead over Kentucky in the Champions Classic loss. But Duke avoided a similar fate on Friday when Flagg, Tyrese Proctor (8 points, 4 assists, 4 rebounds) and Kon Knueppel (13 points, 3-of-6 on 3-pointers) wouldn’t concede.

“It was a high-level college basketball game,” Flagg said. “It was really physical, and they’re a very physical team. So I think I found my footing (in the second half).”

Arizona came into the game ranked in the top five in adjusted pace on KenPom and the Wildcats were also the best offensive rebounding team in the country. But against the Blue Devils, Arizona scored just six points on fast breaks and grabbed just six offensive rebounds.

After the match, the fears of security and police personnel were not realized. There were no further incidents and Duke’s players, staff, family members and friends all safely exited the building without incident.

The Blue Devils, who next face No. 1 Kansas on Tuesday in Las Vegas, had weathered storms on and off the field in their first real road test. Scheyer said he was impressed with his team’s resilience in a hostile environment, especially when Arizona tried to close the gap late.

“I thought there were a few stretches at the start of the second half but I think it was reduced to eight points… but to have the maturity to respond and then get back on defense, I think that that’s an honor for these guys,” he said. “We’ve done a lot of game situations this year and in the preseason (in practice), but it’s really the maturity of them.”