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Super book Bodog previews Duke vs. North Carolina and Kansas vs. Missouri.
The North Carolina Tar Heels have been an epic disappointment this season and are headed for the NIT barring a miracle run in the ACC Tournament. But don't you think the young Heels would cherish stopping archrival Duke from winning the ACC regular-season title? That's what is on the line Saturday night in Durham, with the Blue Devils opening as 14.5-point favorites on Bodog's NCAA Basketball Odds
Duke (25-5) was beaten at Maryland on Wednesday night, which dropped the Blue Devils into a first-place tie in the conference with the Terps. Maryland plays Virginia earlier on Saturday, but Duke would claim the top seed in the ACC Tournament if the two finished tied. And it's Senior Night at Cameron Indoor Stadium, which should make the Cameron Crazies even crazier. That means the final home game for star guard Jon Scheyer, among a few others, and his class has yet to beat the Heels at home, with Carolina having won four in a row in Durham. Duke has yet to taste defeat at home this season (10-4-1 ATS) and has won every game but one by double digits.
North Carolina (16-14, 3-6 ATS on road) has shown a pulse of late, having beaten Wake Forest and Miami back to back. It's the Heels' first consecutive wins since December, but they are only 2-7 on the road. UNC leading scorer Deon Thompson has a back issue, but he will start Saturday night. Duke won the first meeting this season, 64-54, in Chapel Hill behind 24 points from Scheyer. The Blue Devils shot only 31.9 percent from the field, while Carolina's 54 points were its fewest in seven seasons under coach Roy Williams. The Heels' eight assists and 34.5 percent overall shooting were season lows. The underdog has managed to cover in 13 of the past 18 meetings in this series, and the road team has in the past five.
There's only one place to bet: Bodog
Saturday afternoon's Border War between Kansas and Missouri certainly has the feel of a trap game for the No. 2 Jayhawks, as they already have the Big 12 title and a No. 1 seed for the NCAA Tournament wrapped up – thus not a ton to play for. Mizzou, meanwhile, is a tremendous home team and looking to boost its potential seed in both the conference and NCAA tournament. KU has opened as a 3-point favorite on Bodog's NCAA Basketball Odds
The Tigers have just one home loss in the past two years – coming earlier this season to Texas A&M – and are a stellar 8-4 against ranked teams the past two years, including 2-0 this season at home. In fact, dating to the 2007-08 season, Mizzou has won four straight at home vs. ranked teams, including beating Kansas last year. The Tigers have won three of the past five in this series at Mizzou Arena and are 5-0 all-time at the arena on Senior Day (which Saturday is). No team plays faster than Missouri, which leads the nation with 11.1 steals per game and in turnovers forced (19.9). The Tigers can finish anywhere from second to fifth in the Big 12 depending on this weekend's results.
Kansas has clinched its sixth straight Big 12 Conference regular-season title, but it's Missouri and not Kansas that is the defending Big 12 Tournament champ. The Jayhawks handled Mizzou fairly easily back on Jan. 25 Lawrence, 84-65. Center Cole Aldrich dominated the paint in that one with 12 points, 16 rebounds and seven blocked shots. Missouri shot just 28 percent from the floor. KU freshman Xavier Henry was held to nine points in the first meeting but has been tearing it up of late, averaging 20.8 points in the past four. KU has only covered once in its past six games.
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