Zion’s Duke career is (probably) over, but he delivered one last batch of highlights

The Zion Williamson experience abruptly ended Sunday when the No. 1-seed Duke Blue Devils suffered a 68-67 loss to the No. 2-seed Michigan State Spartans in the Elite Eight.

Despite falling short of the Final Four, the All-American power forward put together one of the best — and most memorable — seasons in recent history.

Assuming the loss was his final game for Duke, the freshman went out with a vintage performance in Washington: 24 points, 14 rebounds, three blocks, three steals, two assists and plenty of highlights.

Williamson got started early at Capital One Arena. The forward needed less than four minutes to throw down a dunk for the first time, stealing an offensive rebound away from Michigan State and rising past a defender to cut the Spartans’ early lead down to two points.

Less than four minutes later, Williamson got loose along the baseline and flushed home another dunk off the dribble, this time cutting Michigan State’s lead down to five.

The second half was all about his defense, as Williamson, projected to go No. 1 in the 2019 NBA draft, recorded all three of his blocks, including a crazy closeout to get a fingertip on a three-point attempt by forward Kenny Goins.

These are some of the lasting memories Williamson will leave from his debut season in Durham, North Carolina:

The loss ends the Blue Devils’ quest for their first national championship since 2015, when Duke became one of the few teams led by one-and-done prospects to actually win a title.

Instead, the veteran Spartans are heading to Minneapolis, Minnesota, for the Final Four. Michigan State will face the No. 3-seed Texas Tech Red Raiders on Saturday with a trip to the national championship game on the line. With two more wins, the Spartans could be the first Big Ten Conference team to win a national title since 2000.