Michigan State Spartans vs Duke Blue Devils Betting Preview
Two of the greatest coaches in college basketball history will square off Sunday as Tom Izzo, and the No. 7 Michigan State Spartans (23-12) take on Mike Krzyzewski and the Duke Blue Devils (29-6). This game will be played at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena, with tipoff scheduled for 5:15 pm ET.
Playing in the Western region, the winner of this game will square off with the winner of No. 11 Notre Dame and No. 3 Texas Tech next Thursday.
The Spartans were able to avoid an upset as they beat No. 10 Davidson 74-73 on Friday. In the win, Joey Hauser had a game-high 27 points to go along with eight rebounds and two assists.
For Duke, they cruised to a 78-61 win over Cal State Fullerton on Friday. Paolo Banchero led all scorers with 17 points while also adding ten rebounds and four assists.
Duke is the favorite in this one. They are -265 to win while the Spartans’ moneyline sits at +215. The spread features Michigan State +6.5 (-110), and the over/under for total points is 145.
More Odds
Duke has the sixth-best odds in the nation of winning the National Championship at +1400. Michigan State is +20000 to win it all.
By The Numbers
Duke has one of the best offenses in the nation this season. They rank sixth in scoring averaging 80.1 points per game. The Spartans rank 116th averaging 72.1 points.
Defensively, Duke again has the advantage. They rank 98th in scoring defense, allowing 67 points per game to opponents. Michigan State ranks 148th allowing 68.6 points.
Spartans Trying To Break Losing Trend To Duke
For as successful as head coach Tom Izzo has been with Michigan State, the program has struggled against Duke. In fact, in their last 15 games, they are just 3-12 straight up against the Blue Devils. On Sunday, they will look to buck that trend and send Duke packing.
The Spartans only have one player averaging double digits in senior forward Gabe Brown. He is averaging 11.4 points on 42.1 percent shooting. He is also averaging 3.9 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game.
While they don’t have much in the way of top-tier scorers, they do have depth as seven players for the Spartans are averaging seven points or more. Their next three top scorers are Max Christie (9.3 points, 3.5 rebounds), Malik Hall (9.1 points, 4.7 rebounds), and Marcus Bingham Jr (9.1 points, 6.1 rebounds, 2.2 blocks).
Duke Trying To Extend Krzyzewski’s Career By At Least One Game
This season has been a bit of a farewell tour for Mike Krzyzewski in what has been a long and illustrious coaching career. For his players, they are trying to postpone his retirement by at least one game and get him back to the Sweet 16.
Leading Duke’s potent offense is the freshman phenom Paolo Banchero. The forward is averaging 17 points on 47.5 percent shooting to go along with 7.9 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 1.1 steals per game.
Other significant contributors include Wendell Moore Jr (13.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4.6 assists, 1.4 steals), Trevor Keels (11.7 points, 3.7 rebounds, three assists, 1.3 steals), Mark Williams (11.1 points, 7.4 rebounds, 2.8 blocks), and AJ Griffin (10.4 points, 3.9 rebounds).
Take The Blue Devils To Win And Cover
This won’t be the end of the road for Mike Krzyzewski. His team is just too talented and too deep for an inconsistent Spartans team to be able to lock down.
That isn’t to say that Tom Izzo’s crew won’t make this respectable as the Spartans are just too well-coached to let this completely get out of hand.
Still, while it might be close in the first half, expect Duke to eventually pull away. For that reason, take Duke to both win and cover the modest 6.5-point spread.
