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Duke Blue Devils vs. Ohio State Buckeyes betting odds were coming in at Ohio State -5.5. The total on this game was 144. All odds courtesy of Sportsbook.com – Join now and receive up to $250 in FREE CASH.
Two of the best teams in the country go head-to-head Tuesday night as No. 3 Duke travels to Columbus to take on No. 2 Ohio State.
After winning the Maui Invitational last week with victories over Tennessee, No. 15 Michigan and No. 14 Kansas, this will be Duke’s first road test of the season. Last year, the Blue Devils finished 7-4 (SU and ATS) in away games and 10-7 ATS against non-conference opponents. The Buckeyes’ chances of victory rest on the fingers of Jared Sullinger (18.8 PPG, 10.7 RPG), who is the premier inside threat in the nation. But, even though he may dominate the Blue Devils on the boards, Duke was outrebounded by both the Wolverines and Jayhawks and still managed to pull out ATS victories.
Duke (7-0) has been led out of the gate by two of its juniors this season, Seth Curry (15.1 PPG) and Ryan Kelly (14.6 PPG). Kelly, in particular, has come on strong recently, averaging 17 points per contest in the Maui Invitational against three strong opponents. Much of the spotlight for head coach Mike Krzyzewski’s squad has been on flashy freshman Austin Rivers (14.4 PPG), who has been inconsistent thus far this year, scoring 20 points against Michigan but disappearing at other times. The key for the Blue Devils may be their interior play, headlined by Mason Plumlee who is averaging a double-double this season (11.4 PPG, 10.0 RPG). He will have to be physical against an Ohio State squad that averages 6.1 more rebounds per game than Duke.
Ohio State (6-0) may have the most dynamic scoring combo in the country with Sullinger and guard William Buford (17.7 PPG). But, keying the Buckeyes offense is a deep crew of guards who combine for 20.3 assists per game, good for fifth-best in the nation. The ball distribution is led by Aaron Craft (5.5 APG), but is also aided by Buford (3.2 APG), Lenzelle Smith Jr. (3.0 APG) and freshman Shannon Scott, who dishes out 2.5 per contest despite just averaging 13 minutes of playing time. Still, the win will not come without aggressive play from Sullinger in the post. Ohio St. has outrebounded its opponents in five of six this year, with the exception being Florida, the Buckeyes’ only ATS loss in this young season. The one huge advantage Duke has here is three-point shooting, as the Blue Devils are connecting on 46% of their threes, while the Buckeyes have posted a subpar 31% 3-point FG.
- Carrie Stroup, Gambling911.com Senior Reporter
