Cameron Boozer Calls Out Media Rooting Against Duke in NCAA Tournament: ‘Everyone Wants Us To Lose’

Duke star Cameron Boozer was key in the No. 1-seeded Blue Devils’ hard-fought 80-75 win over the No. 5-seeded St. John’s Red Storm in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament on Friday. Boozer iced the game with his free throws as St. John’s attempted an upset, finishing the contest with a double-double of 22 points, 10 rebounds, and 3 assists.

Why Cameron Boozer Called Out Duke’s Naysayers After Sweet 16 Win

While speaking to reporters in the locker room after the game against the Red Storm, Boozer called out fans and analysts rooting for the Blue Devils to get upset during the NCAA Tournament while praising the team’s response to trailing in their Sweet 16 matchup.

“You can watch the media. Everyone wants us to lose,” Boozer said. “We go into Siena halftime, they’re talking about I hope Duke gets upset. We played TCU, they talking about, that’s a physical team we gonna get upset. Same thing with St. John’s. I think we just did a great job blocking out all the noise, focusing on what’s important.

“Credit to those teams, they’re great teams. We’re gonna play another great team on Sunday. We’ve shown toughness as a team playing through adversity. We’ve had some comebacks, we took some punches in the face, responded and that’s what we did tonight. Got punched in the mouth, did a great job weathering the storm, super proud of our guys.”

Head coach Rick Pitino’s Red Storm shot 40.6% from beyond the arc and tallied 9 points from the Blue Devils’ turnovers to lead by a point at halftime and by as much as 10 points in the second half before Duke responded to defeat the Big East champions.

MARCH MADNESS: Fill In Your Bracket Now!

The Blue Devils have trailed by 10 or more points in six games this season and, shockingly, are 6-0 in those games, showcasing their ability to respond to adversity. In their first-round clash against the Siena Saints, Duke trailed by 13 points and was on upset alert before recovering and edging the game 71-65.

The Blue Devils will face one of the Big Dance’s dark horses when they take on the No. 2-seeded UConn Huskies, who have won two of the last three national championships, on Sunday evening at Capital One Arena for a chance to reach the Final Four.

Head coach Dan Hurley’s Huskies, who come alive during the Big Dance, edged a close contest against head coach Tom Izzo’s No. 3-seeded Michigan State Spartans to book their marquee Elite Eight clash against the Blue Devils.