Pittsburgh vs Duke 3/1/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

The 4^th ranked Duke Blue Devils will travel to the Petersen Events Center to take on the Pittsburgh Panthers this Tuesday night in College Basketball action.

The 4^th ranked Duke Blue Devils won their 6^th straight game and improved to 25-4 on the season after defeating the Syracuse Orange, 97-72, this past Saturday. Duke was lights out on the offensive end against the Syracuse defense and had no trouble cruising to victory after going into halftime with a 51-34 lead. Duke shot 53.8% from the field & 46.9% from beyond the arc while allowing Syracuse to shoot 49.2% from the field & 27.8% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Blue Devils was Mark Williams who had a double-double with 28 points, 12 rebounds, 1 assist, & 3 blocks.

On the season, Duke is averaging 80.1 ppg on 48.6% shooting from the field. The Blue Devils are averaging 8.3 three-pointers per game on 37.3% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Duke has been led by Paolo Banchero (16.7 ppg, 8.1 rpg, 3.0 apg, 1.0 spg), Wendell Moore Jr. (13.2 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 4.6 apg, 1.5 spg), Trevor Keels (11.7 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 3.1 apg, 1.5 spg), & Mark Williams (11.1 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 2.9 bpg).

Defensively, Duke is holding their opponents to an average of 65.4 ppg on 41.0% shooting from the field. The Blue Devils have a rebound margin of 5.2 and a turnover margin of 0.9.

The Pittsburgh Panthers lost their 2^nd straight game and dropped to 11-18 on the season after being defeated by the Miami Hurricanes, 85-64, this past Tuesday. Pittsburgh had no answers on either end of the court for Miami in the 1^st half and could not fight back after going into halftime trailing by a 47-27 margin. Pittsburgh shot 48.1% from the field & 29.4% from beyond the arc while allowing Miami to shoot 55.2% from the field & 45.0% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Panthers was John Hugley who had 20 points, 7 rebounds, & 1 assist.

On the season, Pittsburgh is averaging 62.5 ppg on 41.7% shooting from the field. The Panthers are averaging 5.6 three-pointers per game on 32.7% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Pittsburgh has been led by John Hugley (14.7 ppg, 8.1 rpg, 1.3 apg), Jamarius Burton (12.7 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 2.5 apg), Femi Odukale (11.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 3.5 apg, 1.0 spg), & Mouhamadou Gueye (9.7 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 1.1 apg, 2.1 bpg).

The Blue Devils are just 2-5 ATS in their last 7 games vs. Pittsburgh & 0-8 ATS in their last 8 Tuesday road games. The Panthers are 5-2 ATS in their last 7 Tuesday games, however, are just 5-15 ATS in their last 20 home games.

Duke has been solid on both ends of the court this season as the Blue Devils come into this game ranked 12^th in scoring offense, 14^th in FG%, 66^th in scoring defense, & 55^th in defensive FG%. Pittsburgh has been led by their defense which ranks 121^st in scoring defense & 89^th in rebound margin, however, the Panthers offense has struggled putting points up on the board as Pittsburgh comes into this game ranked just t-337^th in scoring offense & 295^th in FG%.

Duke has been playing some outstanding basketball as of late, however, it’s hard to imagine that the Blue Devils will be able to shoot as well as we saw against Syracuse this past weekend. Pittsburgh is coming off some tough losses to Georgia Tech & Miami, however, the Panthers have overall been solid ATS this season which includes ATS wins vs. Syracuse, UNC, Virginia Tech & Florida State. Pittsburgh is not going to upset Duke in this one, however, as I do think Pittsburgh will be able to keep this game somewhat competitive behind a strong defensive effort, I’m taking the Panthers to cover with the large number of points. Good Luck!