One of the top rivalries in college basketball is renewed tonight in Chapel Hill when the North Carolina Tar Heels (20-11, 13-6) host the Duke Blue Devils (27-3, 18-1).
Duke smacked UNC in Durham, 87-70, on February 1 in their first meeting of the season.
The Tar Heels have played well of late winning their last six games including a 91-59 rout of Virginia Tech Tuesday night. North Carolina held the Hokies to 29 points in the first half.
Duke obliterated Wake Forest, 93-60, Monday night in Durham for their seventh straight win. The closest game in the seven was an 18-point win in Charlottesville over UVA on February 17. Their average margin of victory during the streak is 31.8 points.
Lets dive into the matchup and offer some information and possibly a sweat or two.
We’ve got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on the how to catch the opening tip, recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks & best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts.
Game details & how to watch Duke at North Carolina
Never miss a second of the action and stay up to date with all the latest scores and player news. Check out our day-by-day NCAA Basketball Schedule Page that includes live game updates.
Game odds for Blue Devils at Tar Heels
The latest odds as of Saturday courtesy of BetMGM:
-
Odds: Duke Blue Devils (-550), North Carolina Tar Heels (+400)
-
Spread: Blue Devils -10.5
-
Total: 157.5 points
Expert picks & predictions for Duke at North Carolina
NBC Sports Bet Best Bet
Vaughn Dalzell (@VmoneySports) is dipping into the player prop market for this game: Cooper Flagg OVER 20 points per game
“UNC is 100 percent playing better entering this matchup and I would say playing their most confident ball of the season with six straight wins, however, only one of those teams has a winning record right now and that’s Florida State whose season is ending very soon. UNC has played their way onto the bubble in some people’s minds, but Duke is about to burst that bubble because I don’t see this tank of a team losing. Duke scored at least 40 first-half points in six straight games and every win in that span has been by at least 18 points. I’m not stepping in front of that train.I don’t trust the spread in this game, lean Duke, but I do think Cooper Flagg goes Over whatever his points prop is set at after five straight Unders in road/neutral court play.”
Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the NCAA calendar based on data points like past performance, player matchups, injuries, and the schedule.
Once the model is finished running, we put its projection next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager.
Here are the best bets our model is projecting for today’s Blue Devils & Tar Heels game:
-
Moneyline: NBC Sports Bet is staying away from a play on the Moneyline.
-
Spread: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play ATS on the Duke Blue Devils at -10.5.
-
Total: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play on the Game Total OVER 157.5.
Duke at North Carolina: Top betting trends and recent stats
-
Duke is on a 7-game winning streak
-
Duke’s last 6 games have gone over the Total
-
Duke has covered in its last 6 games
-
UNC has won 6 of their last 10 games against Duke
If you’re looking for more key trends and stats around the spread, moneyline and total for every single game on the schedule today, check out our NCAA Basketball Top Trends Tool on NBCSports.com!
Please bet responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline at 1-800-522-4700.
Follow our experts on socials to keep up with all the latest content from the staff:
· Jay Croucher (@croucherJD)
· Drew Dinsick (@whale_capper)
· Vaughn Dalzell (@VmoneySports)
· Brad Thomas (@MrBradThomas)
