The Notre Dame Fighting Irish have gotten off to a poor start to their ACC season, losing two of their first three games.
Theoretically, they've got a relatively easy schedule from now through the end of January, but there's still the matter of playing against the Duke Blue Devils at Cameron Indoor on Saturday afternoon.
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SCHEDULING
There really shouldn't be anything on the schedule for either of these teams which would cause live bettors to be afraid. Notre Dame draws Georgia Tech on Wednesday before this one, while the games on the back end are both at home against Virginia Tech and Boston College.
Duke certainly will have to worry about an upset against Clemson on Wednesday on the road, especially after the Tigers beat Louisville on Sunday. There's a little concern about the game against Syracuse at home on Monday in a quick turnaround, but first things first for sure, and we can't imagine Coach K and his mates overlooking this one at all.
KEY MATCHUP
With Amile Jefferson out for this game, Duke is really losing one of its best big men. Marshall Plumlee is used to coming off of the bench to play in defensive situations, but he's contributing offensively for the first time in a big way this year. He had 21 points and 10 boards against Virginia Tech, and that came on the heels of scoring 18 against Wake Forest.
Granted, this is a much different challenge, though. Notre Dame could have a real edge in the paint with Zach Auguste. Auguste is 6-foot-10, and he's averaging 13.3 points and 9.5 rebounds per game. He's had it rough here in ACC play with just 28 points and 19 total rebounds in three games, but live bettors will have to keep an eye on this battle. If Auguste starts throwing his weight around, he could be a real difference maker.
What we see all the time with Notre Dame is that its offense works from the inside out. If Plumlee needs help on the inside, Auguste has good enough hands to kick the ball back to the perimeter consistently. The Irish make no mistakes when they get open looks, shooting 40.3 percent from beyond the arc.
KEY STATS & TRENDS
Let's not forget that Duke can shoot some threes as well. Grayson Allen averages 20.5 points per game, while Brandon Ingram, Matt Jones and Luke Kennard are combining for almost five threes per game between them all. The Blue Devils aren't quite as efficient as the Fighting Irish, but live bettors can find themselves in a pinch here as well if they're banking on the under.
That said, Duke's offense has been awesome, particularly in the first half. The Blue Devils have put up at least 50 in the first half in three of their last five games. They've got the second best first half offense in America this year, and that could come into play.
If Notre Dame isn't careful, it could get run out of the building in the first half at Cameron Indoor, something that the Blue Devils have done time and time again this season. Duke is 8-6-1 ATS this season, but more important information for live bettors is that it sports a 10-7 ATS mark in the first halves of games.
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