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Duke Basketball: Why Blue Devils could go undefeated in 2019-20 ACC play

By Matthew Travis

EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN - DECEMBER 03: Tre Jones #3 of the Duke Blue Devils celebrates a first half basket with teammates while playing the Michigan State Spartans at Breslin Center on December 03, 2019 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN - DECEMBER 03: Tre Jones #3 of the Duke Blue Devils celebrates a first half basket with teammates while playing the Michigan State Spartans at Breslin Center on December 03, 2019 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /
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DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA – DECEMBER 31: Vernon Carey Jr. #1 of the Duke Blue Devils (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA – DECEMBER 31: Vernon Carey Jr. #1 of the Duke Blue Devils (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images) /

February/March Opponents

2/1 @ Syracuse

Syracuse is currently 8-6 this season with a record of 1-2 against ACC opponents. Syracuse has struggled quite a bit this season, but they do have the second-best scorer in the ACC, Elijah Hughes who is currently averaging 19.7 points per game.

According to ESPN’s BPI Duke has an 81.9% chance to win this game.

2/4 @ Boston College

Boston College is currently 8-6 this season with a record of 2-1 against ACC opponents. Who was that one loss to? That would be an 88-49 loss against Duke on December 31st. Duke already beat them by 39 points, this shouldn’t be a very competitive game.

According to ESPN’s BPI Duke has a 92.6% chance to win this game.

2/8 @ North Carolina

North Carolina is currently 8-6 and is 1-2 against ACC opponents. The Tar Heels have struggled in a major way this season and because of it, it looks VERY unlikely that they make the NCAA Tournament come March.

If Cole Anthony is not back for this game, which it is likely he will still be out, the Blue Devils should have no trouble beating a team that has already lost to Wofford, Georgia Tech and several other teams.

According to ESPN’s BPI Duke has an 84.2% chance to win this game.

2/10 vs. Florida State

Florida State is currently 13-2 with a record of 3-1 against ACC opponents. If you ask me, this is going to be Duke’s toughest game currently left on their schedule. Florida State is a VERY good team and they have proven it in their three ranked wins.

One of FSU’s two losses came in the first game of the season as they lost by two points to Pittsburgh, the other being a 16 point loss to Indiana. Florida State is a good team and for that reason, this will not be an easy win for Duke.

According to ESPN’s BPI Duke has an 87.3% chance to win this game.

2/14 vs. Notre Dame

The Fighting Irish are currently 10-4 and hold a 1-2 record against ACC opponents. Notre Dame hasn’t beaten a single quality opponent and all of their wins with the exception of UCLA and Syracuse, have come against mid-major teams.

According to ESPN’s BPI Duke has a 93.8% chance to win this game.

2/19 @ NC State

NC State holds a record of 10-4 and is 1-2 against conference opponents. The Wolfpack are believe it or not a very good team and because of it, they are currently ranked 44th in the NET Rankings.

Led by CJ Bryce, NC State has the chance to give Duke problems and typically, NC State is a team Duke tends to struggle a bit against. If Duke were to struggle in any ACC game this season, don’t be surprised if it is against the Wolfpack.

According to ESPN’s BPI Duke has a 74.5% chance to win this game.

2/22 vs. Virginia Tech

Virginia Tech is currently 10-4 and holds a record of 1-2 against ACC opponents. Duke already beat the Hokies by 14 points in Blacksburg and for that reason, it would be VERY surprising if Virginia Tech managed to go into Durham and beat the Blue Devils.

According to ESPN’s BPI Duke has a 93.6% chance to win this game.

2/25 @ Wake Forest

This will be Duke’s second game against the Demon Deacons. Wake Forest is 8-5 on the season with a 1-1 record against top-25 opponents. The Demon Deacons beat Xavier who was ranked 23rd but lost to Arizona who was ranked 14th.

According to ESPN’s BPI Duke has a 90.1% chance to win this game.

2/29 @ Virginia

The Virginia Cavaliers are currently 11-2 with a 3-0 record against conference opponents. Virginia’s two losses have come in Purdue to the Boilermakers and at home against the South Carolina Gamecocks.

Virginia is known for its amazing defense as they let up the least amount of points per game in the nation with 46.7, but their problem is they don’t score enough. The Cavaliers are 350th out of 353 in terms of points scored per game with 55.9. This will be a very interesting matchup of two polar-opposite teams.

According to ESPN’s BPI Duke has a 71.2% chance to win this game.

3/2 vs. NC State

This will be Duke’s second matchup against NC State in two weeks. NC State, as mentioned before, is a good opponent, but if Duke can manage to take care of them in Raleigh, there is no reason they shouldn’t do the same at home.

According to ESPN’s BPI Duke has an 89.8% chance to win this game.

3/7 vs. North Carolina

This will be Duke’s second matchup against their rivals from eight miles down the road, but it could be their first time going up against point guard, Cole Anthony. Anthony is without a doubt UNC’s best player and if he suits up for this game North Carolina will be a completely different team.

Next. Biggest takeaways from past week. dark

However, even with Anthony, UNC has already lost to Michigan, Ohio State and Virginia. That being said, Duke shouldn’t struggle against the Tar Heels, but it is never easy when you’re playing your rival.

According to ESPN’s BPI Duke has a 94.1% chance to win this game.

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