No. 2 Duke vs No. 15 Troy Preview
Where: Bon Secours Wellness Arena, Greenville
When: Friday, March 17, 7:20 PM ET
Line: Duke Blue Devils (-20.5) vs. Troy Trojans (+20.5); total: 154.0 – view all NCAAB lines
TV Broadcast: TBS
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Betting on the Duke Blue Devils (-20.5)
The Duke Blue Devils will head into the national tournament with momentum on their side after capturing the ACC Tournament title in dramatic fashion at Barclays Center on Saturday night. Duke edged past Notre Dame, 75-69, in the final to grab its first ACC Tournament championship since 2011. It was a historic victory for the Blue Devils who became the first team to win the league’s postseason title with four victories in four days.
Jayson Tatum starred for the Blue Devils in the final, finishing with 19 points and eight boards. Tatum was phenomenal the entire ACC tourney, averaging 22 points and 7.5 rebounds in the four games that Duke played. Tatum’s emergence as well as the solid play of tournament MVP Luke Kennard (20.1 PPG) and Grayson Allen (14.1 PPG) makes Duke one of the teams to beat in this year’s national tournament. The Blue Devils are pegged at +600 to win the Big Dance.
Duke will open its campaign this coming Friday against surprise package Troy. The two sides have never met in men’s basketball. Expect the Blue Devils’ experience to shine through in this matchup. Behind the brilliance of head coach Mike Krzyzewski (90 NCAA Tournament victories), Duke has managed to win six national titles in its storied history. Coach K has the Blue Devils peaking at exactly the right time, with Duke recording come-from-behind victories against Louisville, North Carolina and Notre Dame in the ACC Tourney.
Duke is 7-3 SU and 5-4-1 ATS in its last 10 games.
Betting on the Troy Trojans (+20.5)
The Troy Trojans booked a spot in the national tournament with a thrilling 59-53 win over the Texas State Bobcats in the Sun Belt championship game on Sunday. It was the sixth consecutive victory for the Trojans who earned just their second NCAA Tournament berth. Sixth-seeded Troy showed its resiliency in that tournament with the Trojans playing four games in five days, including three in a row at the end.
The Trojans will look to stretch their unbeaten run even further when they take on No. 2 Duke in the first round this coming Friday. Facing the ACC champions might be a daunting task for the Trojans but they will still fancy their chances of recording a major shock because of their phenomenal offense. Troy is averaging 79.0 points per game this season, 49th in the entire nation. The Trojans led the Sun Belt conference in 3-pointers made with 305 this campaign.
Three players are averaging in double-figures for Troy this season, namely Jordon Varnado (16.5 PPG), Wesley Person (14.8 PPG) and Jeremy Hollimon (12.1 PPG). The trio combined for 49 huge points in the win against Texas State. For the Trojans to stand a chance against Duke, they will need all three players to shoot the lights out right from the get-go. They will be severely tested, though, by a Duke defense that’s allowing just 69.8 points per game this season.
The Trojans may have lost their first game in their only tournament appearance (Xavier – 2003), but don’t dismiss this 15th-seeded team. A Sun Belt team won an NCAA tourney game in both 2015 (No. 14 Georgia St.) and 2016 (No. 12 Arkansas-Little Rock). The Trojans can take comfort in the fact as well that the Blue Devils are 4-7 ATS in their first-round games since 2005.
Troy (+100,000) is 8-2 SU and 7-3 ATS in its last 10 games.
Writer’s Prediction
Duke (-20.5) not only wins but also covers the spread against Troy.
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