If the Maryland/North Carolina game is the feature game on the Tuesday docket in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, the game between the Indiana Hoosiers and the Duke Blue Devils is the highlight on Hump Day’s docket.
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HOW THE INDIANA HOOSIERS CAN COVER THE SPREAD
It's already clear to us that the Hoosiers can't defend in the post this year. Thomas Bryant, a freshman out of New York, was supposed to be the man to come in and be the enforcer in the paint. He has come up big at times offensively, averaging 12.2 points per game, and he's doing so with great efficiency at 70.0 percent shooting from the field.
However, on the defensive end of the court, Bryant takes too many fouls and is easy to take advantage of. Amile Jefferson has to be licking his chops at the possibilities here.
Certainly, if Indiana is going to find a way to cover this game on the road at Cameron Indoor, it is going to have to avoid getting overrun in the paint. The Hoosiers have to force Duke into being an outside shooting team. That isn't a guarantee for success either, but it's the recipe for IU covering.
Remember at that point, Yogi Ferrell and this offense, one which is averaging 84.3 points per game and is shooting 52.7 percent as a team, can do the rest.
HOW THE DUKE BLUE DEVILS CAN COVER THE SPREAD
For the most part, Duke has won games this year by being physical. That Utah State game on Sunday was a great representation of what we've seen all year long. The Dookies took an 11-point lead at halftime, but they really turned on the jets in the second half and ultimately raced to a 33-point victory.
Indiana is going to want to run, and Duke is going to be perfectly fine playing that same type of game. The Blue Devils are averaging a really high 8.3 steals per game, and they're going to put a ton of pressure on Ferrell in the Indiana backcourt. Converting turnovers into quick points is what has propelled Duke to quick runs all year long, and that'll be what it takes to cover this game against the Hoosiers, too.
ANALYSIS AND ODDS PREDICTION
Grayson Allen has been a monster this year, averaging 22.6 points per game for the Blue Devils, and if he does that again in this one and the Hoosiers can't find a way to keep Jefferson off of the stat sheet, it's going to be a long night for the visitors.
Indiana is as talented as any team in America, but losing (and often getting crushed) in games like these against big time teams is why Tom Crean is sitting on a pretty warm seat right now in Bloomington. Games in November won't be what gets Crean booted out of town, but winning them would surely help.
Unless Ferrell plans on having one of the best games of his career, the Hoosiers are simply going to be outmanned.
Duke 87, Indiana 71
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Real-time spreads, totals, props and moneyline odds are all available by clicking here, so start betting with BookMaker today! The game between the Indiana Hoosiers and the Duke Blue Devils is scheduled for Wednesday, December 2, 2015 at 9:15 p.m. ET at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Catch the game live on ESPN.
