Duke Hopes To Start A New Win Streak Over Miami

The Duke Blue Devils (12-1 SU, 7-3-3 ATS) were 4-0 SU and ATS against the Miami Hurricanes (12-3 SU, 6-9 ATS) before losing the last meeting between these two teams in February 2021. The Blue Devils will try to get back in the win column against the Hurricanes this Saturday night at home.

Sportsbook Odds Analysis

The Blue Devils are going off as a 15-point favorite in this ACC showdown. Action on the UNDER has bumped the starting total of 155.5 points down to 152.5 points. The OVER is 5-0 in Miami’s last five games.

Miami News & Notes

Miami erased a 14-point first-half deficit with a 58-point second half in Wednesday night’s 88-87 win over the Syracuse Orange. The Hurricanes failed to cover the spread as 2-point home favorites but did improve to 8-0 SU with a 4-4 ATS record over their last eight games with the victory. Charlie Moore went 6-for-10 from three-point range against Syracuse to lead the team in scoring with 25 points while also recording five rebounds and six assists.

Wednesday’s game was a good encapsulation of this year’s Miami squad. Moore, Kameron McGusty and Isaiah Wong lead a talented offense that is averaging 77.1 points per game this season and 88.3 points per game over the team’s last four games. But on defense, the Hurricanes are allowing 73.7 points per game, keeping the pressure on the offense to perform night in and night out.

Duke News & Notes

The Blue Devils returned to action on Tuesday with a 69-57 win over the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets after having their last two scheduled games postponed due to COVID-19. The 12-day layoff may have had an effect on the offense as Duke was 4-0 SU and ATS with an average of 89.5 points per game prior to Tuesday’s game. The defensive play was still spot on, though, as the Blue Devils have allowed only 61.4 points per game over their current 5-0 SU and 4-1 ATS win streak.

Paulo Banchero led the way over the Yellow Jackets with 17 points and 11 rebounds in 36 minutes of action. Banchero has lived up to his preseason hype averaging 17.1 points and 7.5 rebounds thus far in 2021-22. He, Wendell Moore Jr. and Trevor Keels power a Blue Devils offense that ranks 10th in the nation in scoring with 84 points per game.

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How Miami Will Cover

Miami has won eight straight games in large part due to its red-hot offense. The Hurricanes may not score into the 90s against Duke’s strong defense, but more hot shooting and fast-break scores should keep them in contention for a cover as big underdogs.

How Duke Will Cover

Duke has the clear edge on defense in this matchup and has been in great form in their backcourt over the last few weeks. The Blue Devils should have no trouble scoring on Miami’s porous defense, so covering the spread will simply come down to how well Duke plays on defense.

Computer Pick: Miami +15

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