2013 March Madness Creighton vs. Duke Picks & Predictions
By ATSSportsline.com
PHILADELPHIA, PA (ATS Consultants) – Two-seeded Duke will look to avoid an upset when it takes on seventh-seeded Creighton at 9:40PM ET.
ODDS: Oddsmakers from online sports book Bovada.lv have installed Duke as a 5.5-point favorite over Creighton for tonight’s game, while the over/under total is currently sitting at 146 points. The Bluejays are 28-7 overall and 6-0 at neutral sites, while the Blue Devils are 28-5 overall and 7-1 on neutral floors.
LINE MOVEMENT: Duke opened as a 4-point favorite but the spread has been climbing ever since. The Blue Devils are now either a 5.5 or 6-point favorite depending on what sports book you view, while the total opened at 144 and is now up to 146.
PUBLIC BETTING: Of the wagers placed on tonight’s game, 75% of college basketball public bettors currently favor the Blue Devils. This information is subject to change, however, so make sure you click on the link provided for the most up-to-date public betting numbers.
MARCH MADNESS FREE PICK: Take Creighton. According to latest college basketball trends, Creighton is 20-7-1 ATS last 28 conference games, 6-0 ATS last 6 neural site games, 27-6 ATS last 33 Sunday games. Duke is 0-4 ATS last 4 NCAA Tournament games and 1-6 ATS last 7 vs. a team with a winning SU record.
#7 Creighton (28-7 SU, 19-13-1 ATS) has won six straight games and is coming off a 67-63 win over Cincinnati in the second round giving 3.5. #2 Duke (28-5 SU, 17-16 ATS) has won four of five after beating Albany, 73-61 in the second round as an 18.5 point favorite. The Creighton Blue Jays won't be intimidated by Duke after playing and beating such teams like California on the road (74-64) and Wisconsin (84-74) on a neutral site. The had some bumps in the road in conference play, losing three in a row at one point before ending the season winning six straight conference games and seven of eight overall. Creighton is led by junior All-American forward Doug McDermott, who had 27 points and 11 rebounds against a very physical Cincinnati team in their 67-63 win on Friday afternoon. Creighton is not a one-man team as they average 75.4 points per game (to 78.3 ppg for Duke). They defend well, allowing teams to average just 63.1 points, while shooting 40.8 percent and 31.1 percent from beyond the arc. That's important against a Duke team that shoots 40.5 percent from beyond the arc. However, Creighton is actually a better three-point shooting team, making 42.2 percent from three and 50.6 percent overall. Albany made the game against Duke closer than expected because they made 9-of-15 from three point range against the vaunted Blue Devils' defense. Mason Plumlee (6-10, 235) was able to dominate Albany inside with 23 points and eight rebounds on 9-of-11 shooting. He won't be able to dominate Gregory Echenique (6-9, 260), a Rutgers transfer who averages 9.7 points and 6.7 rebounds along with nearly 2 blocks per game. Creighton has the confidence now and momentum to keep it going no matter who they are playing. The Blue Jays meet the Duke Blue Devils from the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia in the third round of the NCAA Tournament at 9:40pmET on Sunday.
2013 MARCH MADESS FREE PICK: CREIGHTON BLUEJAYS +5.5
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