Louisville vs. Duke Prediction, Odds and Key Players for Wednesday, Feb. 28 (Team total to bet)
By Reed Wallach
Duke couldn't score a massive road win at Wake Forest over the weekend, but it returns home to Cameron Indoor Stadium to face Louisville on Wednesday night in what should be a bounce-back game for the Blue Devils.
While Kyle Filipowski's status is in doubt for this one after suffering an injury during Wake Forest's court storm, the Blue Devils should have little issue taking care of Louisville, lined as north of 20-point favorites.
Will the Blue Devils respond in a big way, even if short handed? Let's check out the odds from FanDuel Sportsbook and dish out a best bet:
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Louisville vs. Duke Odds, Spread and Total
Duke vs. Louisville Betting Trends
- Duke is 15-12 against the spread (ATS) this season
- Duke is 11-6 ATS at home this season
- Louisville is 10-8 ATS as an underdog this season
Lousiville vs. Duke How to Watch
- Date: Wednesday, Feb. 28
- Game Time: 7:00 PM EST
- Venue: Cameron Indoor Stadium
- How to Watch (TV): ACC Network
- Louisville Record: 8-19
- Duke Record: 21-6
Louisville vs. Duke Key Players to Watch
Louisville
Brandon Huntley-Hatifield: If Filipowski can't go, Huntley-Hatifield is the biggest benefactor, in line to build on his 20 points in the first meeting against the Dukies. A strong rim protector with an ability to finish around the rim, the 6'10" junior needs to be at the center of the scouting report for Duke.
Duke
Jeremy Roach: The senior guard has scored in double figures in five straight games while keeping the Blue Devils on track. He has also emerged as a reliable 3-point threat this season, hitting nearly 47% of his 3-point attempts. With the Blue Devils down (or limited) a star big man on Wednesday, Roach may need to shoulder more of the offensive workload.
Louisville vs. Duke Prediction and Pick
The status of Filipowski is paramount to bet on the spread in this one, but I'm going to pivot and target the Duke defense against Louisville's lackluster offense.
Louisville hasn't been able to hold up on the road all season, 1-9 straight up and have failed to break 70 points in all but three of them. While Duke may be short handed, I still believe the Blue Devils can execute a sound game plan and force the Cardinals to play in the half court, where the team is 274th in points per possession, according to ShotQuality.
Duke has no interest in running up and down the floor, outside the top 200 in terms of adjusted tempo this season, per KenPom. The Blue Devils aren't an aggressive defense, relying on their length to contest shots and rebound off of misses to set up their half court offense.
I believe Louisville, who is over reliant at getting to the free throw line, will struggle to establish any physicality against Duke at home and be left chucking up inefficient shots late in the shot clock.
I'm going to avoid getting invovled in the side with questions about Duke's injury report, and instead take the Louisville team total under.
Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
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