The Duke Blue Devils will host the Virginia Cavaliers at the Cameron Indoor Stadium on Saturday night, traditionally a very difficult place to win as a visiting team. Virginia and Duke represent two of the best teams in college hoops and should make for an excellent game.
While Cameron is a tough place for any team to play, Syracuse just proved it’s possible to go in and get the upset against Duke. Now, will the Cavaliers be able to give Duke back-to-back losses and jump them in the AP rankings? They’re already ahead in both the Coaches Poll and KenPom ratings.
While Duke will be trying to bounce back with a win over their biggest competitor for conference supremacy, Virginia will be trying to protect one of few undefeated records still intact as the Cavaliers have won their first 16 games this season.
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Virginia Cavaliers vs. Duke Blue Devils
Date and Time: Saturday, January 19, 2019, 6 p.m. ET
Location: Cameron Indoor Stadium, Durham, North Carolina
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Cavaliers vs. Blue Devils TV Coverage: ESPN
Duke had been rolling with nine straight wins until Syracuse came to town on Monday night, handing them a surprising 91-95 loss in overtime.
The Orange shot very well on the outside, sinking 11 of 25 and going 7-for-10 in the first half to help Syracuse stay close with a high-powered Duke team.
The Blue Devils are stacked on inside with Zion Williamson, R.J. Barrett and Cam Reddish though Reddish did miss the game with Syracuse due to illness. He should be back on the court for Saturday’s game.
Williamson, Barrett and Reddish are all highly regarded talents. This is a young team and that came through in the loss with Syracuse, but the talent shines through more frequently.
Williamson should be the No.1 overall draft pick. He’s currently got 21.2 PPG, 9.4 RPG and 1.9 BPG. He’s a good shooter inside that can sink one on the perimeter from time-to-time, too. With Barrett and Williamson, the team has two players averaging over 20 PPG. Barrett has 23.4 PPG.
Syracuse couldn’t compete with Duke inside so they held their own on the perimeter, particularly after Tre Jones went down with an injury. Jones isn’t as big a scorer as the frontcourt trio for the Blue Devils, but he’s as important as anyone on the floor. A likely first round NBA draft pick, Jones is a dynamic point guard and his absence leaves Duke without a clear option to take the point.
Barrett is a versatile player and could play there. He took the spot in the second half against Syracuse. He had 20 points, 16 boards and nine assists against the Orange. Reddish is also a good ball handler and could filter into the position. He’s also a solid outside shooter.
Whatever the case, Duke will need other to step up to help cover in Jones’ absence. Jordan Goldwire could see more playing time, too. He’s not a great scorer, but plays solid on-ball defense and has shown in limited playing time that he can distribute the ball.
On the other side of the court, Virginia comes into play having won all 16 games played to this point. The Cavaliers topped Florida State in a defense-led game, 65-52, to kick off their ACC schedule. Virginia is a very good defensive squad, but the Cavs can score, too. Most recently, they topped Virginia Tech 81-59.
The Cavaliers have only 74 PPG, but they have been efficient, shooting 48.1-percent from the floor and 40.8-percent from three-point range.
Virginia’s backcourt is a strength that could exploit Duke’s potential weakness with Jones out. Kyle Guy, De’Andre Hunter, Ty Jerome and Mamadi Diakite are all shooting north of 41-percent from beyond the arc.
Guy is the team’s leader in scoring with 15.3 with Hunter and Jerome both scoring at least 13 PPG.
Diakite and Jay Huff are the main threats inside and will be stretched to defend against Williamson, Barrett and company. Virginia’s a strong defensive team overall, but may be a bit undermanned on the glass.
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Duke is stacked in the forward position while Virginia’s strength is on the backcourt, but it’s not quite as simple as that.
Look to see how well the Blue Devils move the ball without Jones and if Reddish, Goldwire or anyone else can step up. At the same time, it’ll be important to see if the Virginia’s defense can slow a dominant Duke offense. Diakite and Huff will have their hands full.
Watch to see the pace of play in this game that could have a big impact on how this plays out. If Duke can move the ball and score early, look for a higher scoring game that plays into Duke’s hands.
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Key Player
Alex O’Connell saw a big uptick in playing time in the loss to Syracuse and the sophomore guard will play a bigger role in the absence of Jones.
O’Connell scored 16 points in the loss with three assists and a couple steals. Those numbers were impressive, but the more impressive stats were his 4-for-8 shooting from three-point range.
Duke isn’t a team that needs to shoot from the perimeter to win, but against a strong defense like Virginia, the ability to spread the floor and shoot outside as well as inside will play well.
Look for Coach K to look to O’Connell to play a sizeable role again on Saturday with his performance perhaps providing a bit of balance. His ability to defend the perimeter will be important as well given the strength of Virginia backcourt.
Cavaliers vs. Blue Devils Live Betting
This could be one of the best college basketball games of the season, let alone the week. These are strong teams, filled with talent, but vastly different styles of play.
In the end, look for Duke to outlast Virginia even without Jones. O’Connell should have a nice game and even the class of freshmen forwards are versatile enough players to make up for Jones’ absences.
The Blue Devils will be determined to defend its floor after the shocking upset at the hands of Syracuse. Duke will defend Cameron in this one.
Check out all of the live betting at BookMaker.eu for this weekend’s college basketball action.
NCAA Basketball Score Prediction: Duke 83, Virginia 77
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