The No. 1 Duke Blue Devils are fresh off a huge win over the Virginia Cavaliers at home over the weekend, and they will use the momentum they got from that victory when they hit the road to face the Pittsburgh Panthers. Will Duke win their second in a row since losing to the Syracuse Orange? Or will the Panthers pull off a shocker?
Betting on the Duke Blue Devils (15-2 Overall / 4-1 Conference)
The Blue Devils were not going to allow themselves lose in Durham two games in a row. Days after getting upset at home in a loss to unranked Syracuse Orange, the Blue Devils rebounded and scored their biggest win of the season by downing No. 4 and fellow ACC elite Virginia Cavaliers, 72-70, on Saturday. Virginia arrived in Durham with arguably the best defense in the nation, but the Cavs repeatedly failed in checking the duo of Zion Williamson and RJ Barrett. Williamson was too powerful and too mobile for his size for the Cavs to do anything remotely effective. The projected top pick of this year’s NBA Draft dropped 27 points, while Barrett finished with a game-high 30 points. If those two could post those numbers against Virginia’s vaunted defense, there’s plenty of reason to believe that they will come up with the same massive performances against Pittsburgh.
One the road so far this season, Duke is 4-1 straight up (SU) and 3-2 against the spread (ATS).
Betting on the Pittsburgh Panthers (12-6 Overall / 2-3 Conference)
Like Duke, the Panthers also recently suffered a loss to Syracuse. In their most recent game, the Panthers absorbed a 74-63 defeat on the road against the Orange on Jan. 19. Notwithstanding that loss, the Panthers’ defense remains one that can’t be underestimated. Pittsburgh is 54th in the nation with 66.8 points allowed per game. It’s not going to be easy for them to put the clamps on Duke’s rampaging offense, but the Panthers can slow Williamson and company enough for them to keep the score close to steal a victory. Rebounding is also expected to be a key factor. Duke is third in the nation in rebounds with 43.5 per game, while the Panthers are 43rd with 38.6 rebounds per contest. Pittsburgh’s interior defense is also set to be challenged hard by Duke’s big men. The Panthers are blocking 13.1 percent of their opponents’ shot attempts at the rim, good for 67th nationally. They are also 46th with 4.5 blocks per outing.
The Panther are 3-1 ATS in their last four meetings with Duke.
