College Basketball Betting – Florida State Seminoles at Duke Blue Devils

Fresh off their dramatic win over rival UNC, the Duke Blue Devils have a top-10 showdown at the top of the ACC standings with Florida State on Monday night. Both teams enter with identical 20-3 overall records and 10-2 conference ledgers in a battle for second-place behind Louisville. Saturday’s thrilling win could be a sign that this Duke team can achieve something the previous group of one-and-doners couldn’t do – win a national championship. There’s still a long road ahead but this young group grew up in Chapel Hill and will ride a wave of emotion into the only meeting of the regular season with the Seminoles.  CLAIM YOUR WELCOME BONUS - $1000 MAXIMUM

Florida State Seminoles at Duke Blue Devils

Date and Time: Monday, February 10, 2020, 7 p.m. ET

Location: Cameron Indoor Stadium, Durham, NC

Opening College Basketball Odds: Duke -8.5, O/U 148

Florida State at Duke TV Coverage: ESPN

Odds Analysis

There is never a shortage of big games in the ACC and both teams prepare for another while riding mini winning streaks. FSU is coming off its own rivalry game after spanking Miami on Saturday, 99-81, to complete the two-game season sweep. It was also the Noles’ third win in a row and their 13th in the last 14 games. They have been involved in some close games recently with four of their last six wins coming by six points or less. They covered against Miami, but the Noles are 2-5 ATS in their last seven contests. Duke has won five straight with the last three on the road. The Blue Devils head home where they always have an advantage. However, two of their setbacks have come at Cameron Indoor, including a shocker to Stephen F. Austin earlier in the season that not many will forget.

Florida State Seminoles

It’s another quick turnaround for the Noles, who had the same Saturday-Monday alignment last week, though it was reversed. They won at Virginia Tech in the front end then beat North Carolina last Monday night failing to cover as a 7.5-point home favorite. “It happens to come at a real, real tough part of the year. That the nature of what television has done to the sport,” coach Leonard Hamilton said.

Hamilton also said his team will be ready for a stiff road challenge. “We’ve played a lot of tough games on the road. In order to prepare for those you have to come up with an approach that’s realistic. We try to teach our guys to stay in the moment.” Apparently it’s working. The Noles are 4-1 SU and 3-2 ATS in their last five road games, including a huge 78-65 win at ACC leading Louisville in early January.

The back end of this turnaround shouldn’t be so draining on the team after a number of starters took the bench early in the blowout over Miami on Saturday. With their showdown in Durham looming, starting guards Devin Vassell and Trent Forrest got some additional down time by helping dispose of Miami quickly. Vassell, the team’s leading scorer, had 13 points on 5 of 9 shooting in 24 minutes. Forrest had 10 points, six rebounds and six assists while also playing around 24 minutes. Both were averaging over 31 minutes during ACC games.

Duke Blue Devils

Duke picked up its first three-game ACC road sweep in four decades and needs to get over the euphoria of its comeback win over rival North Carolina in time for Monday’s showdown. We don’t typically see teams play three straight on the road in league play so that’s part of the reason for the length of time between win streaks. But the fact that they won them all is a good sign for this collection of one-and-doners. But can this group find the energy level to match that from its rivalry game?

First-year players Vernon Carey Jr., Cassius Stanley, Wendell Moore Jr. and Matthew Hurt are the backbone of a team that reached 20-wins for the 24th consecutive season. These kids weren’t even alive back in 1996, which was the last time Duke failed to win 20 games. Neither was Tre Jones, but the veteran sophomore has been around the program and stepped up against UNC knocking down the game-tying shot in regulation. He led all scorers with 28 points.

You could say that the Dookies shouldn’t have allowed the downtrodden Heels to gain a 13-point advantage in the final 4 ½ minutes of the second half. Or even a 5-point bulge in overtime. You can also say they are pretty damn good to overcome those deficits in a hostile road environment. They certainly have the firepower to do that. Duke leads the ACC and ranks second nationally averaging 83.1 points per game with Carey’s 17.8 points leading four players in double figures, and they’ve cashed the over in eight of their last 10 games.

Bet Florida State at Duke at BookMaker.eu

History certainly is on Duke’s side with 40 wins in 50 all-time matchups. But an emotionally draining game at UNC will take a toll. And FSU had a much easier time in its rivalry matchup. The Noles showed off their depth allowing starters to rest, but the group of reserves is solid and will play a role in FSU’s upset road win.

College Basketball Score Prediction: Florida State 76, Duke 72

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- Phil Simon, Gambling911.com