Duke looks for rare sweep of Tar Heels
Roy Williams and the Tar Heels are playing the final game of a thoroughly disappointing season that will ultimately see them miss the Big Dance. But don't think UNC has nothing to play for tonight in Durham where the Heels have a chance to seriously dent Duke's chances of a No. 1 seed. The Blue Devils are favored by 14½ in this one, with the 'under' having cashed three of the last four series meetings between the rivals.
One more game.
We’re in the final throes of the NCAA men’s basketball regular season. Many teams have already played their last game and are waiting for Championship Week. Some have already begun their conference tournaments, like the members of the Big South and the Atlantic Sun.
But there’s still unfinished business to take care of in the major conferences. We’ll get you started right with the most important Rivalry of the weekend.
North Carolina at Duke (-14½, 146½)
Saturday, 9 p.m. (ET) ESPN
It’s going to be very strange to see the Tar Heels (16-14 SU, 10-18 ATS) in the NIT. The last time they were there was 2003; since then, the Heels have reached the Elite Eight four times and have won two national championships. Not this year. North Carolina simply couldn’t keep up after losing Tyler Hansbrough, Ty Lawson, Wayne Ellington and Danny Green to the NBA draft. But the Heels can still play spoiler on Saturday against their most hated enemies.
Duke (25-5 SU, 17-10-2 ATS) started the week on top of the ACC with a chance to sew up a No. 1 seed at the Big Dance, but Wednesday’s 79-72 loss at Maryland (+1) changed all that. The Terrapins are now in a tie with the Blue Devils atop the standings.
More importantly for Duke, the path to the Final Four will be more difficult as a No. 2 seed, especially if the Devils end up in the same region as, say, the 27-2 Syracuse Orange.
But losing to Maryland on the road is nothing to be ashamed of. Instead, give the Devils their due for staying strong at 8-1 SU and 4-3-2 ATS in their past nine games. That’s in stark contrast to their late-season collapses over the past five years. Ken Pomeroy still has Duke ranked No. 1 in team efficiency after the Maryland loss, with the top offense in Division I and the No. 6-ranked defense. North Carolina is way down the list at No. 58 overall.
The Heels are 3-7 SU and ATS in their last 10 games, including a humbling 64-54 loss to Duke (-5½) at Chapel Hill. How they respond Saturday at Cameron Indoor Stadium will speak volumes for their chances in 2011. ESPN has the television coverage starting at 9:00 p.m. Eastern.
Florida at Kentucky
Sunday, 12 p.m. (ET) CBS
Duke could also end up in the same March Madness region as Kentucky (28-2 SU, 16-12 ATS), easily the best team in the SEC and No. 8 on the Pomeroy charts. The Wildcats were having trouble making money for handicappers, saddled with great expectations after the arrival of coach John Calipari, but losing at South Carolina (+7) in January knocked UK out of the No. 1 spot in the polls. The ‘Cats are 9-1 SU and 7-3 ATS since then to place themselves firmly in the black going into Champ Week.
This already has to be considered a successful season for Florida (20-10 SU, 13-12 ATS). The Gators are currently in Tournament position after having to settle for the NIT in 2008 and 2009, but they’ve lost quite a bit of their shine at 3-4 SU and 2-5 ATS in their last seven games.
The long season may finally be catching up to this young and inexperienced team; coach Billy Donovan is squeezing as much as he can out of the starting rotation, but Florida has been coming up short in late-game situations, losing by four points to Vanderbilt (+3) and two points to Georgia (+2) this past week. Florida’s No. 50 rating on the Pomeroy charts comes with a lot of downside.
The betting odds will be on Kentucky’s side when they open this weekend. On January 12, the Wildcats went to Gainesville and left with an 89-77 victory, easily cashing in as 3½-point road faves. UK nailed seven of its 18 trey attempts; the poor-shooting Gators were 8-of-27 from downtown as they tried to come from behind. We could see more of the same when we tune in to CBS at noon Eastern.
Roy Williams and the Tar Heels are playing the final game of a thoroughly disappointing season that will ultimately see them miss the Big Dance. But don't think UNC has nothing to play for tonight in Durham where the Heels have a chance to seriously dent Duke's chances of a No. 1 seed. The Blue Devils are favored by 14½ in this one, with the 'under' having cashed three of the last four series meetings between the rivals.
One more game.
We’re in the final throes of the NCAA men’s basketball regular season. Many teams have already played their last game and are waiting for Championship Week. Some have already begun their conference tournaments, like the members of the Big South and the Atlantic Sun.
But there’s still unfinished business to take care of in the major conferences. We’ll get you started right with the most important Rivalry of the weekend.
North Carolina at Duke (-14½, 146½)
Saturday, 9 p.m. (ET) ESPN
It’s going to be very strange to see the Tar Heels (16-14 SU, 10-18 ATS) in the NIT. The last time they were there was 2003; since then, the Heels have reached the Elite Eight four times and have won two national championships. Not this year. North Carolina simply couldn’t keep up after losing Tyler Hansbrough, Ty Lawson, Wayne Ellington and Danny Green to the NBA draft. But the Heels can still play spoiler on Saturday against their most hated enemies.
Duke (25-5 SU, 17-10-2 ATS) started the week on top of the ACC with a chance to sew up a No. 1 seed at the Big Dance, but Wednesday’s 79-72 loss at Maryland (+1) changed all that. The Terrapins are now in a tie with the Blue Devils atop the standings.
More importantly for Duke, the path to the Final Four will be more difficult as a No. 2 seed, especially if the Devils end up in the same region as, say, the 27-2 Syracuse Orange.
But losing to Maryland on the road is nothing to be ashamed of. Instead, give the Devils their due for staying strong at 8-1 SU and 4-3-2 ATS in their past nine games. That’s in stark contrast to their late-season collapses over the past five years. Ken Pomeroy still has Duke ranked No. 1 in team efficiency after the Maryland loss, with the top offense in Division I and the No. 6-ranked defense. North Carolina is way down the list at No. 58 overall.
The Heels are 3-7 SU and ATS in their last 10 games, including a humbling 64-54 loss to Duke (-5½) at Chapel Hill. How they respond Saturday at Cameron Indoor Stadium will speak volumes for their chances in 2011. ESPN has the television coverage starting at 9:00 p.m. Eastern.
Florida at Kentucky
Sunday, 12 p.m. (ET) CBS
Duke could also end up in the same March Madness region as Kentucky (28-2 SU, 16-12 ATS), easily the best team in the SEC and No. 8 on the Pomeroy charts. The Wildcats were having trouble making money for handicappers, saddled with great expectations after the arrival of coach John Calipari, but losing at South Carolina (+7) in January knocked UK out of the No. 1 spot in the polls. The ‘Cats are 9-1 SU and 7-3 ATS since then to place themselves firmly in the black going into Champ Week.
This already has to be considered a successful season for Florida (20-10 SU, 13-12 ATS). The Gators are currently in Tournament position after having to settle for the NIT in 2008 and 2009, but they’ve lost quite a bit of their shine at 3-4 SU and 2-5 ATS in their last seven games.
The long season may finally be catching up to this young and inexperienced team; coach Billy Donovan is squeezing as much as he can out of the starting rotation, but Florida has been coming up short in late-game situations, losing by four points to Vanderbilt (+3) and two points to Georgia (+2) this past week. Florida’s No. 50 rating on the Pomeroy charts comes with a lot of downside.
The betting odds will be on Kentucky’s side when they open this weekend. On January 12, the Wildcats went to Gainesville and left with an 89-77 victory, easily cashing in as 3½-point road faves. UK nailed seven of its 18 trey attempts; the poor-shooting Gators were 8-of-27 from downtown as they tried to come from behind. We could see more of the same when we tune in to CBS at noon Eastern.
