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Duke Basketball: Top 5 reasons why the Blue Devils will be better than North Carolina in 2018-19

By Jerran Anderson

ATLANTA, GA - MARCH 28: RJ Barrett #6 of Montverde Academy dunks during the 2018 McDonald's All American Game at Philips Arena on March 28, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - MARCH 28: RJ Barrett #6 of Montverde Academy dunks during the 2018 McDonald's All American Game at Philips Arena on March 28, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images
Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images /

5. Blue Devils’ non-conference schedule will boost their confidence

The Duke Blue Devils open their regular season slate against the Kentucky Wildcats, and much like the Blue Devils, the Wildcats will have fresh new faces adjusting to the game as well. This is where it starts and begins for the Duke Blue Devils in 2018-19. Win or lose, Duke begins to build their confidence in the first game of the year.

Army (Nov. 11) and Eastern Michigan (Nov. 14) will be good warmups before the team heads to Hawai’i for the Maui Invitational (Nov. 19-21). The Maui Invitational will boast a challenge for the Blue Devils in a field of the Arizona Wildcats, Gonzaga Bulldogs and the Xavier Musketeers.

If they can survive the gauntlet of potential NCAA Tournament teams, their next biggest test will be highly-rated freshman Romeo Langford and the Indiana Hoosiers in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge on Nov. 27. After Indiana, there’s Stetson, Hartford, Yale, Princeton, Texas Tech and St. John’s.

Texas Tech and St. John’s may pose some challenges but looking across the highway at the Tar Heels schedule, the Duke Blue Devils’ made it out pretty good. The Tar Heels face the Stanford Cardinal, Texas, UCLA/Michigan State, the Michigan Wolverines, Gonzaga, Kentucky and Harvard.

By the time January arrives, these team could be in tough different places in the Top 25 rankings. Duke will have the hype behind them if they can win games, which is something Coach K knows how to do.

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