The Blue Devils are rolling, after 11 games they are 11-0 with two wins against top 10 opponents. As one of only 10 undefeated teams you have to wonder, will Duke ever lose this season?
For the first time in a long time Duke had a favorable non-conference schedule and they managed to win all 11 games thus far with only two left, one on December 20th and another on February 3rd. So far Duke has played only two ranked teams and they will not play another team that is currently ranked until their January 15th showdown with the Miami Hurricanes.
However, Duke will face off with an undefeated team lead by Terrance Mann in the Florida Seminoles on December 30th. With that being said and the fact that they play only five more games against teams that are currently ranked, Duke should definitely be able to win out. Let’s take a look at the logistics of it and how likely it really is though.
Duke’s Remaining Schedule:
12/9: Duke @ Boston College(6-3) 74.3% Chance to Win
12/20: Evansville(7-2) @ Duke 96.0% Chance to Win
12/30: Florida State(7-0) @ Duke 80.1% Chance to Win
1/6: Duke @ NC State(7-2) 65.0% Chance to Win
1/10: Duke @ Pitt(5-4) 91.1% Chance to Win
1/13: Wake Forest(5-4) @ Duke 89.0% Chance to Win
1/15: Duke @ 10Miami(8-0) 40.7% Chance to Win
1/20: Pitt(5-4) @ Duke 97.2% Chance to Win
1/23: Duke @ Wake Forest(5-4) 72.5% Chance to Win
1/27: 15Virginia(8-1) @ Duke 61.2% Chance to Win
1/29: 9Notre Dame(7-2) @ Duke 73.3% Chance to Win
2/3: Duke vs St. John’s(8-1) at Madison Square Garden 66.7% Chance to Win
2/8: Duke @ 11UNC(8-1) 40.2% Chance to Win
2/11: Duke @ Georgia Tech(4-3) 80.9% Chance to Win
2/14: Virginia Tech(7-1) @ Duke 74.5% Chance to Win
2/18: Duke @ Clemson(7-1) 53.6% Chance to Win
2/21: Louisville(4-2) @ Duke 84.6% Chance to Win
2/24: Syracuse(7-1) @ Duke 88.3% Chance to Win
2/26: Duke @ Virginia Tech(7-1) 48.4% Chance to Win
3/3: 11UNC(8-1) @ Duke 67.4% Chance to Win
All Percentages from ESPN.com’s Matchup Predictor
Of their 20 remaining games the Blue Devils are favored in all but three of those games. The games they are not favored in are at UNC, Miami, and Virginia Tech. I think the only game of the three that we may actually have to worry about is at Miami.
The Hurricanes are one of the most underrated teams in the country in my opinion, even though they are ranked number 10. They are often not talked about, and behind Terrance Mann there is a good chance they make it deep into March and potentially early April.
When I did my pre-season preview and predictions, which can be found below, I had the Blue Devils losing two games this season, one of which to Michigan State, which Duke won, and one to Miami.
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If Duke can manage to overcome Terrance Mann and the number 10 ranked Hurricanes, there is a very good chance that Duke finishes the regular season undefeated at 31-0 going into the ACC Tournament.
The biggest key to finishing the season undefeated is team chemistry. Last year Duke’s problem was their chemistry which was a major reason as to why they did not live up to expectations and why they lost in the first weekend of the tournament.
If they can continue to improve their chemistry the Blue Devils should have no problem continuing to win. The next key is their rebounding. Duke has been a fantastic rebounding team this season which is a big reason as to why they are 11-0.
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Behind Marvin Bagley III the Blue Devils have gone for 46.5 rebounds per game while the opponent has gotten 32.4. Marvin Bagley III alone has averaged 11.2 rebounds per game which has been a big help to Duke on both ends of the floor.
If Coach K and his young Blue Devils want to keep up their winning ways they need to continue their presence on the glass and they need to continue to improve their chemistry. If they do both of these things you can expect Duke to be playing in April still with a 0 in the loss column.