The 13th seeded Vermont Catamounts are set to take on the 4th seeded Duke Blue Devils in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday. The winner of this game will take on the winner of the Wisconsin Badgers and James Madison Dukes on Sunday. This is part of the South Region.
The Vermont Catamounts are 29-6 on the season. The Catamounts have won ten straight games, and are 28-6 overall. Vermont was the regular season winner and the conference tournament winner in the America East Conference.
For the Duke Blue Devils, they are 24-8 on the season. The Blue Devils finished second in the Atlantic Coast Conference regular season. Duke then lost in their first game of the conference tournament.
The Duke Blue Devils are -12.5 over Vermont in this game. The total for the affair is set at 132.5.
Vermont Catamounts
The Catamounts are no strangers to the NCAA Tournament. They are also no stranger to winning games. With their 10 game winning streak, they are a dangerous team here. The Catamounts beat UMass-Lowell in the America East title game by 5. The last time Vermont lost was on February 8th at NJIT.
On the season, Vermont is scoring 72.3 points per game, but have been winning games with their defense. The Catamounts have allowed 64 or less points in four out of their five games in March.
The top scorer for Vermont this season has been TJ Long. Long is scoring 12.2 points per game. Long in the conference title game scored 14 points. In a recent win over Albany, Long led the team with 20 points.
Duke Blue Devils
The Duke Blue Devils are led by Kyle Filipowski. The big man is scoring more than 17 points pre game, and ripping down more than 8 rebounds per game. Jeremy Roach is second for the Blue Devils, with 14 points per game. Duke, as a team is scoring 79.8 points per game.
In the back to back losses for Duke, they allowed opponents to score 79 points, while scoring just 74. In the non conference slate for the Blue Devils, they started the season with a 1-1 start. After beating Dartmouth, they lost a five point game to Arizona on November 10th.
Losses to Arkansas and Georgia Tech had them at three losses before the start of the New Year. The Blue Devils were swept by their rival North Carolina Tar Heels this season, including the season finale.
Vermont Sticks Around
Duke is going to win this game. But, do not be surprised if the Catamounts of Vermont stick around, and stick around for the whole game. Vermont is going to be fundamentally smart, and be able to make shots.
In the end, the Blue Devils win the game, but not by much. Our final bet for this game on Friday is the Vermont Catamounts +12.5 over the Duke Blue Devils. Enjoy the game and best of luck with all your NCAA Tournament betting!
