With Duke men's basketball set to take on Clemson Tuesday at Cameron Indoor Stadium, the Blue Zone is here with some can't-miss prop bets:
Duke (-11) vs. Clemson
I'm not saying that the Blue Devils have this win in the bag—they have two ACC losses thus far, including one this past week against the Seminoles—but they do have the odds in their favor. Ahead of the match, ESPN forecasts Duke to have an 88.1% chance of victory, and if that’s not enough evidence for you, then just take a look at Clemson’s middling record of 11-8 (3-5 in the ACC). Sure, the Tigers have a win against N.C. State, a school that the Blue Devils have also beaten. But Clemson also lost recently in a 91-78 rout against Syracuse, a program that Duke handed a massive 20-point loss Saturday.
The Blue Devils may not be perfect, but no team in the conference is, as each program has registered at least two ACC losses thus far. Duke has proven through its depth and recent play that it has what it takes to defeat this Clemson team, and while the Tigers may have strong players such as PJ Hall, David Collins and Nick Honor, this trio is unlikely to be enough against Duke's handful of NBA draft prospects. With that in mind, I say it’s a safe bet that the Blue Devils take the cake Tuesday night. If the team plays close to as well as it did in triumphs against cross-opponents N.C. State and Syracuse, Duke is likely to send the Tigers home with at least an 11-point deficit.
Pick: Duke -11
Over/Under 145.5
The Blue Devils have been successful in racking up points throughout January, for the most part. With only one scoring output under 70 points—the Blue Devils only scored 69 in a win against Georgia Tech—Duke has all the makings to snag enough scoring to reach that mark again. However, in Duke's most recent showing against the Orange, the score did not add up to over 145.5 points despite the Blue Devils registering 79 points on the day. Additionally, only six of the Tigers’ 19 matches thus far have reached 145.5 points—one of those contests was an 80-75 loss to Miami, a team which Duke lost to earlier this month.
Pick: Under 145.5
To win opening tipoff: Duke or Clemson
The team that wins the opening tipoff rarely decides which group ends up with the victory. However, it should be a safe bet that Duke tallies the first possession. On the Blue Devil side, there is 7-foot-1 Mark Williams, a veteran at the half-court stripe. The Tigers have 6-foot-10 sophomore PJ Hall likely to compete for the ball. Both players are key offensive members of their respective starting lineups. However, while both hover around a 240-pound build, Williams has a three-inch advantage on Hall. The Virginia Beach, Va., native has been consistent when it comes to getting his team the ball first, so it very well may happen again Tuesday.
Pick: Duke
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