Duke vs North Carolina prediction, college basketball game preview, how to watch, lines, and why each team might – or might not – win on Saturday.
Duke vs North Carolina prediction, college basketball game preview, how to watch: Saturday, February 5
Duke vs North Carolina How To Watch
Date: Saturday, February 5
Game Time: 6:00 ET
Venue: Dean Smith Center, Chapel Hill, NC
How To Watch: ESPN
Record: Duke (18-3), North Carolina (16-6)
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Duke vs North Carolina Game Preview
Why Duke Will Win
The Blue Devils got back on track after the loss at Florida State a few weeks ago with a steady run of good defensive performances and a whole lot of rebounds.
You don’t beat North Carolina without being able to being able to hang around on the boards, and Duke has been dominating with 42 or more in three of the last four games including a whopping 33 on the offensive glass over the last two games.
It’s not going to get that against the Tar Heels, but it”ll hold its own.
North Carolina shoots well, but it doesn’t play a ton of defense, it doesn’t force mistakes, and it’s in trouble when it doesn’t get second chance points and save its D by getting the board.
What happens when the Tar Heels don’t rock in rebounding margin? They get obliterated by Kentucky, lose by 17 to Tennessee, and get dropped by Purdue. However …
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Why North Carolina Will Win
The threes are dropping for the Tar Heels.
It’s a good deal when you can hit the offensive boards. Take lots of shots from the outside, rebound the misses, score from there. But lately, they’ve been on with ten or more threes in three of the last four games – all wins.
Duke’s defense is fantastic at guarding the three, but can it also make sure it doesn’t give up easy points on the inside when it’s worrying about the outside?
On the other end, Duke hasn’t been on from three lately. Overall it’s been fine this season, but it couldn’t hit a thing in the low-scoring win over Notre Dame and haven’t hit 40% from the outside in four of the last six games.
North Carolina doesn’t have to win this game from the outside, but if it outshoots Duke from three, look out.
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What’s Going To Happen
You think Mike Krzyzewski is going to lose his final game in Chapel Hill?
Duke hasn’t been quite as sharp overall as he might like, but North Carolina is hardly consistent from the field over the last several games.
Again, Duke will get the job done on the boards, it’ll be better overall from the field in the second half, and it’ll be Duke-North Carolina. It’ll be a fight that comes down to a few late possessions.
The Blue Devils will will keep struggling on the free throw line to make this interesting, but they’ll survive.
Duke vs North Carolina Prediction, Lines
Duke 82, North Carolina 77
Line: COMING, o/u: COMING
ATS Confidence out of 5: COMING
Must See Rating: 5
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