The Duke Blue Devils hit the road on Tuesday after a couple difficult games at home, hoping to build off an impressive win over Virginia on Saturday. They’ll take on the Pittsburgh Panthers in this game as one of the ACC’s best takes on a team closer to the bottom of what is ultimately one of college hoops’ best conferences.
After their win over Virginia, it’s easy to see Pittsburgh as a bit of a letdown game, but their loss to Syracuse a few days prior helped humble the Blue Devils a bit. Will they build off their momentum against the Cavaliers and win this one going away on Tuesday or will Pittsburgh find a way to cover the spread and keep this one close?
The Panthers have already gotten a couple big conference wins against top-tier teams, but a win—or even down-to-the-wire loss—to Duke would be a further step in the right direction for this team. Does Pittsburgh have what it takes to get the job done?
NCAA Basketball Betting at Bookmaker.eu
Duke Blue Devils vs. Pittsburgh Panthers
Date and Time: Tuesday, January 22, 2019, 9 p.m. ET
Location: Petersen Events Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
College Basketball Odds: Check Back Later
Blue Devils vs. Panthers TV Coverage: ESPN
The Blue Devils are coming off a tight win over Virginia. While they were at home and barely got the win, it was a huge confidence boost for the team to topple the Cavaliers even with Tre Jones on the sidelines.
Jones is the point guard, the ball handler on the court. He’s been instrumental all year in setting up the big men inside the paint. While he’s not been a great outsider shooter, he at least has provided a bit of a different look, giving the team a threat in the backcourt. The team felt his absence against Virginia, but still came out ahead. Jones may and/or may not be available against Pittsburgh.
Without him, Duke shot 51-percent from the floor, but was just 2-for-14 outside in the win over Virginia. As usual, R.J. Barrett and Zion Williamson led the way in the win. Barrett shot 11-for-19 for 30 points. Williamson scored 27with a team high nine rebounds and the lone block for the Blue Devils. Cam Reddish struggled shooting the ball, but was a big defensive presence, with two steals and seven defensive rebounds. His nine points was also third on the team.
On the season, Barrett and Williamson are both scoring north of 21 PPG with the latter averaging 9.4 rebounds as well and nearly two blocks. Those two are huge weapons and can pretty much carry this Duke team against anyone.
Beyond them, Reddish is a nice third piece and excellent threat himself with Jack White and Alex O’Connell solid veteran complimentary pieces.
The other two key figures on this team are vastly different. Jones is one and his potential return to the court would be huge. Speaking of huge, Marques Bolden is just that. The center has seen his playing time increase of late and while he’s not a reliable offensive weapon, he can put some points on the board when given a chance. He, however, is more valuable as a defensive weapon and barrier inside. He’s got 37 blocks in just 329 minutes and is a solid rebounder as well.
On the other side of this matchup, Pittsburgh is simply not equipped to compete with the Blue Devils inside.
The Panthers have a dozen fewer PPG, several less RPG and a lower shooting percentage from the floor as a team. The only area Pittsburgh seems to have an edge is on the outside.
This is a much smaller team than Duke. The top five players in minutes are guards with Xavier Johnson leading the way. Johnson’s the team’s leading scorer. He’s a threat nearly anywhere on the court, including the outside. He’s shooting 40.3-percent form the perimeter. He’s got 17.1 PPG.
The Panthers have two others scoring in double-digits in Trey McGowens and Jared Wilson-Frame. They both can hold their own outside as well.
Inside, Terrell Brown is the biggest weapon, both literally and figuratively. He’s a defensive weapon more than an offensive one and will be asked to help defend Williamson and Barrett inside on Tuesday night.
As a team, Pittsburgh doesn’t have nearly the resume of Duke. They haven’t risen to the top of the AP rankings, but they do have some good wins in ACC play already, including beating Florida State—a fellow ranked team—in their last home games. The last time they were in Pittsburgh before that, they topped Louisville in overtime. The Panthers are just 2-3 in conference, but they’re 2-1 at home against the ACC, only UNC has topped them at the Petersen Events Center.
Live Betting
Watch how well the Pittsburgh defense can handle Duke’s high-powered, fast-paced offense early in the game.
The Panthers and Blue Devils rank closely in defensive efficiency. While KenPom gives Duke the nod there, it’s much closer than on the offensive side. Pittsburgh cannot compete with Duke if this becomes a shootout. The Blue Devils are the better shots from the floor and better team on the glass. Instead, Pittsburgh needs to find ways to slow Duke on the court.
These two teams are giving up similar PPG totals to their opposition, but Duke’s outscoring the Panthers by a longshot.
For all of the most up-to-date odds and the best prop bets and live betting opportunities, look no further than BookMaker.eu before and during this ACC showdown.
Key Player
There are really two key players in this game, one for Duke and one for Pittsburgh.
For the Blue Devils, the player is Jones if he’s able to play. Williamson and Barrett are absolute superstars and Reddish is a reliable player, too, but Jones really helps spread the court and move the ball around. He’s had 5.7 APG when he’s played and is a solid defender outside, too. His court awareness is really beyond his years as a freshman.
Given the Panthers’ strength on the outside, Jones would help spread the court a big more for Duke and provide more defense on the perimeter.
Meanwhile, given the Panthers’ depth at the guard position and lack of size, Brown is key for them inside the paint.
Brown’s the biggest weapon for Pittsburgh against the likes of Williamson and Barrett. He won’t be able to stop them, but he can at least provide some obstacle inside. He’s also a talented blocker who could get a few big blocks to help keep Pittsburgh close.
Blue Devils vs. Panthers Live Betting
Yes, the Blue Devils lost to Syracuse at home and, yes, the Panthers did top FSU and Louisville already in conference play. An upset here isn’t out of the realm of possibility, but it still seems highly unlikely.
The Blue Devils are stacked inside with some of the best talent in college basketball. They have as many as four players who could go in the first round of the next NBA draft. That’s an insane amount of talent.
Look for Williamson and Barrett to dominate the floor. There’s no way for Pittsburgh to stop them. Even if Jones is still out for this one, the team should be fine. Pittsburgh will have to try and exploit a weakness outside, but even Virginia couldn’t do that.
While the Panthers are at home and this could be a bit of a letdown game for the Blue Devils after the huge win against Virginia, the teams are still wildly mismatched in talent. Look for Duke to walk away with an easy win.
Check out all of the live betting at BookMaker.eu for Tuesday’s college basketball action.
NCAA Basketball Score Prediction: Duke 85, Pittsburgh 71
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