Cavaliers Now

Anthony Robinson Rejects Cooper Flagg's Dunk With Emphatic Block

Matt Newton

Aaron Snyder
In this story:

Virginia may have lost the game to No. 3 Duke, and it wasn't particularly close, but the play of the night goes to UVA's redshirt freshman center Anthony Robinson, who met Duke's superstar phenom Cooper Flagg at the summit and denied his attempt at a posterizing dunk with an emphatic block.

ESPN made sure the world saw Robinson's incredible rejection of Flagg, who is the odds-on favorite to be the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.

The best view of Robinson's outstanding defensive play was not a video, but a photograph taken on the baseline by Virginia Cavaliers On SI's very own staff photographer Aaron Snyder, who perfectly captured the moment Robinson met Flagg at the rim in a fantastic sequence of photos:

Anthony Robinson blocks a dunk attempt by Cooper Flagg during the Virginia basketball game vs. Duke at John Paul Jones Arena.
Aaron Snyder
Anthony Robinson blocks a dunk attempt by Cooper Flagg during the Virginia basketball game vs. Duke at John Paul Jones Arena.
Aaron Snyder
Anthony Robinson blocks a dunk attempt by Cooper Flagg during the Virginia basketball game vs. Duke at John Paul Jones Arena.
Aaron Snyder
Anthony Robinson blocks a dunk attempt by Cooper Flagg during the Virginia basketball game vs. Duke at John Paul Jones Arena.
Aaron Snyder
Anthony Robinson blocks a dunk attempt by Cooper Flagg during the Virginia basketball game vs. Duke at John Paul Jones Arena.
Aaron Snyder
Anthony Robinson blocks a dunk attempt by Cooper Flagg during the Virginia basketball game vs. Duke at John Paul Jones Arena.
Aaron Snyder

Follow Aaron Snyder on Instagram here.

Of course, Flagg and company got the last laugh. Duke's freshman sensation had 17 points, 14 rebounds, two assists, two blocks, and two steals to lead the Blue Devils to an 80-62 win over Virginia on Monday night at John Paul Jones Arena. The Cavaliers hung around for a bit and trailed by 14 at the half, but Duke built a lead as large as 27 and coasted to its 15th ACC win of the season.

But still, Robinson's block was a great play by a very promising young player who is playing with more and more confidence every time he stepped on the floor. After being squarely out of the rotation for the first half of the season, Robinson has now played double-digit minutes in eight of the last nine games and posted a career-high 15 points last time out to help Virginia to a big win at Virginia Tech. UVA's three-game winning streak came to an end at the hands of the Blue Devils on Monday night, but Robinson had another solid performance with seven points on 3/4 shooting, three rebounds, and the phenomenal block to prevent the dunk by Cooper Flagg.

Up next, Virginia (13-13, 6-9 ACC) hits the road to take on North Carolina on Saturday in Chapel Hill. Tipoff from the Dean Smith Center is set for 4pm ET and the game will be broadcast on ESPN.

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Matt Newton
MATT NEWTON

Matt launched Virginia Cavaliers On SI in August of 2021 and has since served as the site's publisher and managing editor, covering all 23 NCAA Division I sports teams at the University of Virginia. He is from Downingtown, Pennsylvania and graduated from UVA in May of 2021.