It gets no bigger than No. 7 North Carolina and No. 9 Duke on Saturday at Cameron Indoor Stadium. These in-state rivals tip at 6:30 p.m. ET with live coverage on ESPN.
The Tar Heels (24-6 SU, 17-13 ATS) have already claimed a share of the ACC regular season title with a conference record of 16-3. The Blue Devils (24-6 SU, 18-12 ATS) are a game back at 15-4 in league play. The scenario is simple: UNC wins the ACC title outright with a victory. Duke and UNC will split the ACC’s regular season crown if the Blue Devils prevail.
Let’s get to North Carolina vs. Duke odds and predictions for the latest installment in college basketball’s greatest rivalry.
Can I bet on UNC vs. Duke in North Carolina on Saturday?
No. Legal online sports betting in North Carolina begins at noon ET on March 11. While you can’t legally bet on UNC vs. Duke today, you’ll be able to wager on every game in next week’s ACC Tournament! Look at this top trio of upcoming betting events:
- ACC Tournament
- March Madness
- The Masters
March Madness is almost here, so North Carolina basketball bettors will be able to register and wager at top North Carolina sports betting sites during the best time of the CBB season.
Looking ahead to Monday’s NC launch: Best North Carolina sports betting promos | How to bet on Tar Heels basketball odds at NC Sportsbooks | How to bet on Blue Devils basketball odds at NC sportsbooks
North Carolina vs. Duke betting line: Point spread, moneyline, total
Here are Tar Heels vs. Blue Devils odds on the best sportsbook apps:
As a 4.5-point favorite, North Carolina defeated Duke 93-84 at the Dean Dome back in early February.
UNC Tar Heels betting news and analysis
North Carolina eviscerated Notre Dame 84-51 earlier this week on Senior Night at the Dean Dome. The Tar Heels easily covered ATS as a 16-point favorite in a game that slipped UNDER the total of 139.
UNC finished its regular season with a home-court record of 14-1 SU. That included the nine-point win over Duke on Feb. 3. North Carolina big man Armando Bacot got the better of Duke center Kyle Filipowski in that contest. Bacot, who was involved in the low-post offense early and often, finished with a season-best 25 points and 10 rebounds.
North Carolina’s defense stifled Duke with 11 turnovers and 19 subsequent points off of them. It’ll take another defensive gem to sweep the season series against the Blue Devils, who have lost just one game since the defeat in Chapel Hill.
Likely ACC Player of the Year, UNC guard R.J. Davis, was hounded by Duke’s Tyrese Proctor and Jeremy Roach in the first meeting. Davis rallied to finish with 17 points, but he endured a physical beating to do so.
Expect the Blue Devils to employ that same level of intensity on defense with a focus again on Davis. The good news for UNC backers comes in the form of Harrison Ingram (12.5 ppg) and Cormac Ryan (10.8 ppg). Both players transferred into the program this season, and they’re both capable of picking up the scoring slack if Davis is hindered.
Ingram came up huge against Duke with 21 points and 10 rebounds in his first-ever appearance in the rivalry. When Virginia slowed Davis later in the season, Ryan led the Tar Heels with a game-high 18 points in UNC’s 54-44 victory in Charlottesville.
North Carolina is blessed with depth — Seth Trimble, Jae’Lyn Withers, and Jalen Washington also contribute off the bench — but it might be Bacot who’ll again need to have a monster game for UNC to win on Saturday.
Related: March Madness betting sites and promos | Best sports betting bonuses | Latest college basketball betting odds
Duke Blue Devils betting news and analysis
The Blue Devils are 6-4 SU against the Tar Heels in the last 10 meetings at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Last season, Duke prevailed over UNC 63-57 at home and followed that up with near-identical 62-57 win at the Dean Dome a month later.
While Filipowski is often the focal point, Roach dictates much of Duke’s offense and the senior guard is capable of leading the way when need be. To wit: Roach turned in a team-high 21 points in Monday’s 79-64 win over NC State.
UNC (Davis) and Duke (Roach) both possess the most important ingredient for success come March Madness: Great veteran point guards. Proctor is also a double-digit scorer for Duke, and he’s often tasked with defending the opponent’s best player.
Then there’s freshman guard Jared McCain, who might just be Duke’s most lethal scorer of all. McCain helped the Blue Devils stay close in the loss at UNC with a team-high 23 points. He’s Duke’s biggest threat as a 3-point scorer with 69 “treys” made on 40.6% scoring. No other Blue Devil has made 50+ 3-pointers on the season.
Even with such a talented and productive backcourt, Filipowski still leads Duke in scoring at 16.5 points per game. Much was made over this court-storming incident after Wake Forest’s upset over Duke in February, but it didn’t much hinder the 7-foot sophomore center.
Video of the court storm and fan(s) collision with Filipowski. So bad. https://t.co/B1JGLAhVZT
— Pat Forde (@ByPatForde) February 24, 2024
That loss to Wake Forest is the only blemish on Duke’s record since losing in Chapel Hill. The Blue Devils are peaking at the right time of the season under second-year coach Jon Scheyer.
As was the case in February, much will be made of the Filipowski-Bacot matchup. There is another head-to-head worth keeping an eye on: Duke forward Mark Mitchell vs. Ingram. Mitchell, who failed to contain Ingram in the first meeting, scored just 11 points despite nearly playing a full 40 minutes.
UNC vs. Duke prediction ATS
This could be another instant classic between North Carolina and Duke in the perennial battle for Tobacco Road supremacy. After two low-scoring games between these teams last season, the OVER cashed easily in UNC’s 93-84 win on Feb. 3.
However, these are top-5 ACC scoring defenses with both giving up less than 70 points per game. With the ACC regular season title on the line, expect defense to win the day and championship.
Pick: UNDER
