There aren’t many teams better than the Duke Blue Devils. Duke has been fantastic this season, despite an early loss to Kansas, and looks more talented than any team in the country. The Blue Devils have knocked off some of the teams considered to be among the best in the nation and are more than ready for the rigors of ACC play. Coach K’s squad will face a team they have never face before on Monday night in their second-to-last game before conference play, when they take on the Tennessee State Tigers.
Don’t miss the hardwood action from Cameron Indoor Stadium at 7 p.m. ET on Monday, December 19, 2016. Catch every moment of the game live on ESPN2. We will have NCAA basketball odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the college basketball Sunday schedule.
College Basketball Odds at BookMaker.eu
Tennessee State has been the best team in the Ohio Valley Conference so far this season. The Tigers are 8-2 and have only lose to Vanderbilt and North Carolina State. This team has been a great one to bet on outside the power five, with a 4-1 ATS mark against non-power conference foes, but failed to cover against Vandy or NC State.
Duke has been on a tear despite having to cover ever increasing numbers this season. The Blue Devils have covered three in a row, including a dominant performance against UNLV last weekend. This team has been playing fantastic defense and that has led to the under going 8-2 in Duke games.
Player to Watch
Grayson Allen has been bothered by injuries for much of the season, but showed what he can do when he is healthy when Duke eviscerated UNLV. Allen was red hot from the floor, going 12-16 from the field and 6-9 from behind the three-point line and led all scorers on the day with 34 points.
Allen hasn’t put up the numbers he did last season, but that’s because Duke is a much deeper squad. This season he is averaging just 17.7 PPG and isn’t shooting as well he was in 2015-16, but that is largely due to injuries. He showed that he is still capable of taking over games against the Rebels and if the Blue Devils struggle here, he’ll come up big.
Matchup to Watch
There aren’t many teams in the country that shoot better than Duke. The Blue Devils are hitting over 50 percent of their shots this year and only Matt Jones is shooting less than 40 percent from the floor. Amile Jefferson leads the team in field goal percentage this season and is hitting an incredibly 67.3 percent of his shots.
Duke will be facing a Tennessee State team that is one of the best defensively in the nation. The Tigers are allowing opponents to hit just 37.7 percent of their field goals on the year and have subsequently allowed just 64.2 PPG. That defense allowed NC State to score just 50 points in regulation just a week ago but will face a much tougher test in this game.
Free College Basketball ATS Picks
As great as Tennessee State’s defense is, the offense has been a burden. The Tigers are averaging just 71.2 PPG on the season and that is going to hurt them against a team like the Blue Devils. Duke has been even better defensively than Tennessee State this season and that doesn’t bode well for the Tigers.
Duke is going to win this game, the only question is by how much. The Blue Devils are coming off of an eight-day break before stepping on the court for this one but might be content to just get past the Tigers with a convincing win. Check the odds at BookMaker.eu beforehand, but Tennessee State should be able to keep this one within 20.
College Basketball Odds: Duke 81, Tennessee State 63
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