The Duke-North Carolina rivalry is arguably the best in all of sports, and the Blue Devils will face the Tar Heels at the Dean Smith Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina on Saturday, March 6. The game will tip at 6:00 p.m. ET and will be quite different than previous meetings between these teams, as neither one of these programs is an NCAA Tournament lock at the moment.
Who will win when these rivals clash tonight? Find out with our Duke vs. North Carolina picks and predictions.
Duke Blue Devils at North Carolina Tar Heels betting preview
Injuries
Duke: No injuries to report.
North Carolina: F Sterling Manley (questionable), F Puff Johnson (questionable) .
Find our latest NCAA basketball injury reports.
Betting trend to know
North Carolina is 4-0 ATS in its last four games following an ATS loss. Find more NCAA betting trends for Duke vs. North Carolina.
NCAAB sharp money and line movement report
By Patrick EversonPointsBet USA has North Carolina up to -3 shortly before tipoff, after opening the Tar Heels -2.5 Friday night. However, the road 'dog is getting attention. "Fifty-eight percent of bets and 67 percent of handle on Duke," PointsBet's Wyatt Yearout said. The total jumped from 147.5 to 150.5, with 62 percent of bets/74 percent of cash on the Over.
Check out the full line movement for this gameAgainst the spread (ATS) pick
Duke and North Carolina faced one another on February 6, when the Tar Heels earned a 91-87 victory over the Blue Devils. Duke NBA prospect Jalen Johnson had a solid outing, posting 14 points and also adding five assists, five rebounds, a block and a steal. However, Johnson has since left the program, and many believe that the Blue Devils have played better team basketball since his departure. But losing that type of talent is no small thing, and it’s hard to imagine that his presence would have hurt Duke in a matchup with North Carolina.
This time around, the teams have some different motivations. While this rivalry is one of the best in all of sports, Duke is just 11-10 and doesn’t look like it’s heading to the NCAA Tournament. On the other hand, North Carolina is 15-9 and a couple of wins over the next week or so could earn the Tar Heels a spot. Duke would definitely like to spoil the season for North Carolina, but there’s no denying that this Blue Devils team is a bit deflated at the moment. That means a lot when factoring in that the Tar Heels have everything to play for.
Two players to keep an eye on in this game are Caleb Love and Kerwin Walton. The two of them combined to score 37 in the last meeting between these teams, and North Carolina’s backcourt should once again be able to take advantage of a lousy Duke defense.
PREDICTION: North Carolina -2.5 (-110)
Over/Under Pick
While Duke has been rather disappointing this season, the team is capable of scoring the basketball. The Blue Devils are 14th in the nation in adjusted offensive efficiency this season (all efficiency stats according to KenPom.com) and they had no trouble finding the hoop in the last meeting with this excellent Tar Heels defense.
Meanwhile, while North Carolina isn’t great offensively, the team did have its way with Duke’s 99th-ranked adjusted defense. This game might not reach the 178 points the two teams combined to score last game, but the Over definitely looks like the right play.
PREDICTION: Over 148.0 (-110)
Duke vs North Carolina betting card
- North Carolina -2.5 (-110)
- Over 148.0 (-110)
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