The calendar has flipped over onto the month of March, a sure sign that the NCAAB tournament is right around the corner. There are still some details to take care of before we jump into March Madness, though, starting with the final week of the regular season, which gets underway on Monday night. That will be followed by the conference tournaments and the last opportunity for bubble teams to prove that they belong with the 68 teams that will make up the tournament. There are a bunch of teams who have already secured their spot, so the next couple of weeks for the will be about building some momentum and trying to move up as high as possible in the national rankings. The Duke Blue Devils are, to the surprise of no one, already on their way to the tournament, but they will be looking to close out the season on a high note, starting with a home game against the NC State Wolfpack on Monday night. The Duke Blue Devils are in as a 12 ½ point favorite on home court, with the point total for this one set at 153. Let’s see how the College Basketball odds will be for the NC State vs Duke.

NC State vs Duke 2020 College Basketball Game Preview & Betting Odds

• When: Monday, March 2 at 7 PM EST
• Where: Cameron Indoor Stadium, Durham
• TV: ESPN
• Radio: TuneIn.com
• NCAAB Odds: Duke -12.5 / Total 153

Less than two weeks ago, N.C. State throttled @DukeMBB en route to a 22-point blowout. Tonight, the Blue Devils will get their chance at revenge:https://t.co/cXZo1hd86L

— Duke Basketball (@dukebasketball) March 2, 2020

Why bet on the NC State Wolfpack

With an 18-11 record on the season, the NC State Wolfpack are a team very much on the bubble heading into the final week of the regular season. Ironically enough, it may well be their 88-66 win over Duke a couple of weeks ago that might tip things in their favor in the eyes of the selection committee. Still, they followed that up with back to back losses against Florida State and UNC before recovering from a slow start to down Pitt over the weekend. The win against Duke was particularly surprising when you consider that NC State has just 6 wins in their last 20 meetings with the Blue Devils. They have, though, covered the spread in 6 straight games against Duke, but they are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 overall.

Team Stats

• Total Score: 74.55
• Field Goal %: 44.77
• Three Point %: 31.97
• Free Throw %: 71.21
• Total Rebounds: 36.1

Defense

• Total Score: 69.69
• Field Goal %: 42.6
• Three Point %: 31.66
• Free Throw %: 68.31
• Total Rebounds: 37

Why bet on the Duke Blue Devils

The Duke Blue Devils started last week as the #7 ranked team in the nations, but they are going to tumble when the new rankings are released after losing back to back games last week. Duke has now lost 3 of their last 5 games to fall to 23-6 on the season and are not in the type of form that any team wants to be in with the tournament right around the corner. Still, this is a team that is 13-2 on home court this season and who are 7-2 SU in their last 9 games played on a Monday night. On the downside, at least from a betting perspective, the Blue Devils are just 2-6 ATS in their last 8 games. The last 7 meetings between NC State and Duke have gone UNDER the point total.

Team Stats

• Total Score: 82.1
• Field Goal %: 46.99
• Three Point %: 34.77
• Free Throw %: 70.6
• Total Rebounds: 40.03

Defense

• Total Score: 67.66
• Field Goal %: 41.7
• Three Point %: 30.13
• Free Throw %: 67.1
• Total Rebounds: 34.55

NC State vs Duke Betting Trends

• North Carolina State are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games.
• The total has gone OVER in 5 of North Carolina State’s last 7 games.
• North Carolina State are 6-0 ATS in their last 6 games against Duke.
• North Carolina State are 6-14 SU in their last 20 games against Duke.
• Duke are 2-6 ATS in their last 8 games.
• The total has gone OVER in 4 of Duke’s last 5 games.
• Duke are 15-5 SU in their last 20 games.
• The total has gone OVER in 7 of Duke’s last 7 games against North Carolina State.
• Duke are 5-0 SU in their last 5 games at home.

NC State vs Duke Expert Pick and Final Score Prediction

Judging by the trends in this matchup, the UNDER and the Wolfpack to cover look like the two best bets here. I am going with both of those, although I do think that Duke will break out of their slump with the win.

NC State Wolfpack 70 Duke Blue Devils 75