(12) North Carolina at (5) Duke
Time: 8 PM CT (ESPN)
Spread: DUKE -4
Total: 155.5
Odds c/o 5dimes
The Duke Blue Devils got the best of the UNC Tar Heels in the last meeting a week ago, as Duke won 74-64. Duke outscored UNC 49-29 in the second half, and got 21 points and 15 rebounds from center Marvin Bagley III. Duke held North Carolina to just 37 percent shooting and held a plus-4 advantage on the boards, while limiting the Tar Heels bench to just four points on 2 of 7 shooting.
Duke will be 4-point favorites in the third matchup of the teams on the season, as the teams have split the first two matchups. The over/under is set at 155.5 points according to college basketball oddsmakers at 5dimes.
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DUKE Notes:
Duke has been red hot and is a potential No. 1 seed candidate in the upcoming NCAA tournament this month. The Devils still are just No. 2 in the ACC, trailing 16-1 Virginia and unable to catch them at this point in the season. Still, the ACC tournament looms as an opportunity to upset Virginia and claim the ACC crown, howsoever unlikely it might be.
Duke has been led by likely lottery pick Marvin Bailey III. Bagley is averaging 20.7 points, 11.1 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks/steals in his 33 minutes a night. No. 2 scorer Greyson Allen is averaging 15.5 points, 4.5 assists and 1.6 steals in a team-leading 34.7 minutes a night.
Rounding out the rotation are Gary Trent Jr., Wendell Carter Jr., and Trevon Duval.
All boast double-figure scoring averages, and Duke averages 85 points per game on the season. Allen has hit 79 threes, as has Trent Jr, though Trent Jr. is shooting a superior percentage on 79 of 184 on the season. Duke has hit 251 of 660 threes this year, and the team is shooting 49.5 percent from the field. The team clip for threes is hovering at 38 percent, which is a solid mark as the tournament nears in.
UNC Notes:
North Carolina has lost two of its past four to fall to 24-9 on the season.
UNC ranks No. 3 in the ACC, behind both Virginia and Duke. The Tar Heels won the first matchup between the teams, winning 82-78 over Duke at home, but now the Tar Heels face Duke in Durham. In the win over Duke, the Tar Heels were led by Joel Berry II’s 21 points on 7 of 20 shooting.
Kenny Williams chipped in 20 points on 7 of 15 shooting, including 6 of 12 from three-point range. Cameron Johnson was the undisputed star of the game, though, with 18 points, 13 rebounds and two assists in 35 minutes. The Tar Heels shot just 39 percent from the floor in the win, but connected on 11 threes and turned the ball over only twice in the game. Conversely, Duke had eight turnovers and was out-rebounded by the Tar Heels 44-38. UNC lost the last meeting, but will look to get it back together in the third showdown between these in-state heated rivals.
