The ACC Tournament rolls into Spectrum Center in Charlotte this Thursday night in the most highly anticipated game of the week thus far. Despite being the 5th ranked team in the AP Top 25, Duke is still the favorite to win the 2019 National Championship, according to current NCAA Futures which peg them at +300 odds. The topic of conversation of course, is whether or not ACC Player of the Year Zion Williamson will be on the floor. Find the answer to that and more for this ACC Tournament game against the Syracuse Orange, below.
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Betting Preview for the Syracuse Orange vs. Duke Blue Devils ACC Tournament College Basketball Game on March 14, 2019
Where: Spectrum Center, Charlotte, NC
When: Thursday, March 14, 2019, 9 PM ET
Line: Syracuse Orange (odds) vs. Duke Blue Devils (odds) – view all NCAA Basketball lines
TV Broadcast: ESPN
Betting on the Syracuse Orange (20-12 Overall / 11-8 Conference)
The Pittsburgh Panthers made it interesting the first half of Syracuse’s second round game in the ACC tournament, but in the end Orange defense squeezed the life out of head coach Jeff Capel’s Pitt squad, while Syracuse offense was much more efficient in closing out the game, 73-59. Now they move on to face the formidable Duke.
The question mark surrounding Duke’s Zion Williamson has little to do with how the Orange are expected to perform against the Blue Devils this Thursday. Duke was without their superstar on February 23 and still handed the Orange a 10-point defeat, with a final score of 75-65. Guard Tyrus Battle scored a team high of just 16-points while forward Elijah Hughes managed just 12-points. On the night, they shot only 34.3% from the field, just 21.7% from 3-point range, and were out-rebounded 44-40. Syracuse will have to play a much more accurate and aggressive game against Duke this time, if they expect to even cover.
In the ACC this season, the Orange are 17-14 against the spread (ATS) and just 8-11 ATS in the conference after a win.
Betting on the Duke Blue Devils (26-5 Overall /14-4 Conference)
Zion Williamson will suit up. After missing his fifth full game with a knee sprain, Mike Krzyzewski is confident his star player will be on the floor this Thursday to open the ACC Tournament. How long he’ll play is the only question. If RJ Barrett is able to carry the team then Williamson will kick back from the bench for most of the game. Still, his presence will shake the opponent. Granted, things are obviously shaky for the Blue Devils going into this game, having lost two of the last five, with a most recent and painful 79-70 loss to the North Carolina Tar Heels on Saturday. But the silver lining there is that future NBA star (it ain’t just about Zion) RJ Barrett poured in 26-points and pulled down 12 rebounds while Cam Reddish was also impressive with 23-points. North Carolina was simply too much however, but even if Zion contributes up to 10-points it will be enough for Duke to win this Thursday’s battle.
As mentioned, Duke defeated the Orange by ten without Williamson on February 23. Some will cite that Syracuse actually defeated Duke on January 14 in a high scoring (95-91) affair where Williamson scored 35-points and fellow star Barrett hit for 23-points. How could Duke have lost on that crisp January day? The rest of the team stood by and watched. But having Zion out for 5 games straight has been a wakeup call and they will all come to play, without or without serious Williamson minutes.
After a loss this season, Duke is 3-1 ATS, covering 75% of the time, and is 17-14 ATS in the ACC overall, covering for 54.8%.
Writer’s Prediction
Duke wins, 74-65.
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