Syracuse vs. Duke Pick
Will No. 2 Duke have any trouble tonight when it takes on ACC foe, No. 11 Syracuse, in the NCAA Tournament at 9:37PM ET?
GAME SNAPSHOT
NCAA Tournament Midwest Region: (875) Syracuse vs. (876) Duke
Friday, March 23, 2018
Location: CenturyLink Center Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska
TV: CBS, 9:37PM ET
CURRENT ODDS
According to oddsmakers at YouWager, Duke is favored in this game, as the Blue Devils are getting odds of -11.5 points against Syracuse. The over/under total is currently listed at 133 points.
LINE MOVEMENT
The spread opened with Duke as an 11.5-point favorite as well and it hasn’t budged all week. The over/under total opened at 133.5 points, but dropped down to 132.5 and hit a peak of 134 before moving back down to 133.
Bet on College Basketball for Friday, March 23, 2018
PUBLIC BETTING INFORMATION
The public is behind Syracuse tonight. As of Friday morning, the Orange are getting 54 percent of the wagers on this game as the clear underdog against Duke.
KEY INJURIES
Neither team has anyone new players listed on the injury report for tonight’s game.
BETTING STRATEGIES
Duke has looked really impressive thus far in the tournament, defeating Iona 89-67 and beating Rhode Island 87-62. The Blue Devils have covered the spread in both instances to move to 22-11 ATS on the season and 12-7 ATS away from home. Duke has an impressive offense that is putting up 84.9 points per game while its defense gives up just under 70 a game.
Syracuse has won three tournament games in this run. The Orange started with a 60-56 win over Arizona State and followed that up with a 57-52 win over TCU. From there it had one of the bigger upsets of the first weekend, topping Michigan State 55-53. The Orange have been the underdog in all three games. They now sit at 17-17 against the spread on the season and 9-8 ATS away from home. The Cuse defense has been its strength, allowing 63.6 per game this season and just 60.6 over its last five. Offensively, the Orange put up just 66.7 per game.
Duke already owns a 60-44 win at home over Syracuse this season, covering a 13.5-point spread in the victory. The Blue Devils are a better team than they are now and I don’t know that I can definitely say Syracuse is. The Orange have puzzled teams with their zone, but Duke will be ready for it. Syracuse didn’t play well on offense in the win over MSU and it will certainly have to score points to beat Duke tonight and I don’t see the Orange being able to do it. The spread is big, but Duke has the athletes to break the zone and Syracuse doesn’t have the shooters to put up a big number.
NCAA TOURNAMENT PREDICTIONS: DUKE -11.5