Blue Devils vs Cavaliers in the ACC tourney
by Nick Meyer
The Duke Blue Devils always seem to finish at or near the top in the ACC, and the tournament is where they flourish the most.
Duke always has a scrappy team with good outside shooting and that gives them a good chance to win any tournament.
But when they run into a hot-shooting Virginia team, the Blue Devils have shown that they are vulnerable.
The Blue Devils have a tendency to play a bit tentative at times when they are favored in the college basketball betting spreads but that is bound to happen to anyone as it is just human nature.
Teams storm the court virtually every time they beat Duke and that's just the way it is. Beating Duke can make a team's season and they always get the opposing team's best effort.
Virginia today should be no exception for the top-seeded Blue Devils in the ACC Tournament.
Duke Blue (26-5 SU, 18-10-2 ATS) vs. Virginia Cavaliers (15-15 SU, 11-15 ATS)
12 pm ET, ESPN2
: Duke favored at -17
The Blue Devils are fully capable of blowing anyone out and they have been disrespected a bit in the NCAA betting spreads this year due to past failures. But this is a different, deeper, and more athletic Duke team.
Jon Scheyer is playing almost like a player of the year type of guy and Kyle Singler and Nolan Smith are both among the best players the ACC has to offer.
For Virginia to cover the spread in this one they'll need some hot shooting and to play smart against Duke's customary pressure defense, and they are capable of doing that at least at times.
Virginia always has explosive guards and this year is no different despite their unevenness across the board as a team as evidence by their mediocre SU and weak betting spread record on the season.
The Cavaliers should fight hard in this one and the game means more to them than Duke in this ACC Tournament matchup.
That means that Virginia is a solid bet here to cover a spread that seems too high, perhaps overcompensating for the lack of respect Duke has gotten in the betting lines this college basketball season.
Duke will win but Virginia is the best bet here to beat the spread.
