After three straight losses, the Connecticut Huskies finally put a stop to their skid by beating the Coppin State Eagles on Sunday. With a win to build on, the Huskies now turn their attention to their upcoming matchup against ACC powerhouse, the Duke Blue Devils. Duke is on a nine-game win streak to start the season, dominating each opponent that crosses its path. Will the Huskies be the first team to beat Duke this season? Or will the Blue Devils notch their tenth-consecutive victory?
Thursday will also mark the start of the NFL’s penultimate week of regular season action. Read our complete picks and predictions for all NFL Week 16 games here.
[sc:MultiSportArticles ]Connecticut Huskies vs. Duke Blue Devils Betting Preview
Where: IZOD Center, New Jersey
When: Thursday, December 18, 2014, 8:00PM ET
Line: Connecticut Huskies (+11) vs. Duke Blue Devils (-11) – view all NCAA Basketball lines
Betting on the Connecticut Huskies
The Huskies were hell-bent on breaking their three-game slump on Sunday. And no one exemplified the urgency to get a win quite like Amida Brimah, who posted monstrous numbers in UConn’s 106-85 win over the Coppin State Eagles.
[sc:NCAAB240banner ]Brimah scored 40 points and grabbed 12 rebounds against the Eagles to become just the fifth player in Huskies’ history to record at least 40 points and 10 rebounds in a game. It’s unlikely that Brimah will put up a ton of points again against Duke, but he’ll be a key part of the Huskies offense. Aside from being the team’s second-leading scorer (13.7 PPG), Brimah is also the Huskies’ best rim protector, as he is averaging 2.9 BPG.
A large part of Brimah’s explosive night against Coppin State was down to the Huskies’ backcourt duo of Daniel Hamilton and Ryan Boatright, as the two guards constantly fed the big man with perfect lob passes. Together, Hamilton and Boatright finished with 14 of UConn’s 22 assists. Boatright also provided 22 points, going 4-for-7 from the three-point area and 7-for-15 overall.
Boatright is UConn’s leading scorer, averaging 18.9 PPG. In addition, the senior also tops the team with 4.1 APG and 1.9 SPG.
The Huskies are 4-0 ATS in their last four games on the road.
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Betting on the Duke Blue Devils
The Blue Devils didn’t have the best of nights on Monday against the Elon Phoenix, but they have arguably the nation’s best player to help them.
Jahlil Okafor, the top-ranked recruit this season according to ESPN, scattered 25 points and snatched 20 rebounds to power Duke to a 75-62 win over the Phoenix. Three other Duke players scored in double figures, including Amile Jefferson and Justise Winslow, who had 13 and 12 points, respectively. Rasheed Sulaimon, meanwhile, came off the bench and fired 11 points.
Okafor, however, was the clearly the game’s best player. His ability to score inside the paint should give the Huskies major headaches. Okafor is Duke’s top scorer with 17.1 PPG and second-best rebounder behind Jefferson (8.3 RPG), as he is pulling down 7.6 RPG.
Duke could’ve done more damage against Elon, but the Blue Devils allowed the Phoenix to catch up in the second half, largely because of Duke’s inability to take care of the leather. Duke finished with a season-high 17 turnovers, and was just lucky to have Okafor to extinguish Elon’s attempts to make a huge run.
The Huskies certainly have noticed the Blue Devils’ poor free throw shooting against Elon, and it could be something they could use against Duke. The Huskies may be able to play Duke a little bit more physical knowing that the Blue Devils went just 14-for-27 (51.9%) from the free throw line against Elon. That being said, the Blue Devils shoot a more decent 70% from the line thus far this season.
The Blue Devils are 7-3 ATS in their last 10 games overall.
Writer’s Prediction
The Blue Devils win, 78-68.
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