The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets pulled off a huge upset by beating North Carolina last time out. Can they do it again? Georgia Tech will hit the road to face off with another perennial power, the Duke Blue Devils, but will once again be the underdog.
The Yellow Jackets used a huge second half to defeat the Tar Heels will be hard-pressed to duplicate that in this one, especially on the road. Duke lost last time out and will be playing its first game without coach Mike Krzyzewski but should still be comfortable favorites to pick up its first conference win of the season.
This war on the floor will go down Wednesday, January 4, 2017, at 7 p.m. ET at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, North Carolina.
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Odds at BookMaker.eu
Duke is 12-2 straight up and 6-7 against the spread this season. The Blue Devils have played in six home games with a spread and covered in three of them. Duke has been favored in every game this season and that won’t change in this one.
The Blue Devils have failed to cover the last three times out and will attempt to change that.
Georgia Tech is 9-4 straight up and 4-5 against the spread. The Yellow Jackets are 1-2 against the spread on the road this season. They have covered in two of six games as the underdog this season, including the upset of North Carolina last time out.
Coaching Update
Krzyzewski recently announced that he will be taking off several weeks because of a back ailment, and it will be interesting to see how his team responds. Coach K is one of the most successful coaches in college basketball history and has turned the Duke program into a perennial national championship contender.
He will be replaced by Jeff Capel, who is the former coach at Oklahoma and is now the lead assistant for the Blue Devils. Capel has big game experience and he has a roster full of talent, and will aim to keep the team afloat. However, in this chaotic time, the switch from Krzyzewski to Capel must be taken into consideration when it comes to the point spread for this affair.
Letdown Situation
Georgia Tech is riding high after the win over UNC but also may be emotionally spent. It’s really difficult to get up for a road game against a good team just days after upsetting a team at home.
If Duke can get up early, the Yellow Jackets may fold, content to split their two early games against Duke and North Carolina. Georgia Tech beat the Tar Heels behind Josh Okogie, who had 26 points, five rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals.
He will aim to have another big game against Duke and take advantage of any miscommunication after the coaching change.
Free College Basketball ATS Picks
Duke was beaten by Virginia Tech last time out, as a hot start has been complicated first with the suspension of Grayson Allen and now the temporary leave of Krzyzewski. There are still plenty of playmakers on the team, but there is question about where this team is mentally of late.
Luke Kennard had 34 points and seven rebounds against the Hokies but didn’t get much help. The Blue Devils aren’t as good without Allen in the mix but should still have plenty of firepower to win this one, especially at home.
Duke no longer quite looks like the dominant national title contender that it did earlier, but there is still plenty of time to get it ironed out. The Blue Devils can get back into the thick of the conference standings with this home win.
College Basketball Odds: Duke 84, Georgia Tech 76
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