There are plenty of storylines heading into the 5/12 matchup in the East Region.
Duke, under first year head coach Jon Scheyer, has been playing their best basketball of the season over the last month, winning nine straight games. However, they draw a formidable first round opponent in Oral Roberts, who return to the NCAA Tournament after their 2021 Sweet 16 run with star guard Max Abmas.
Abmas was part of the 2021 team, and will look to take the Golden Eagles back to the second weekend with a strong showing against the Blue Devils.
Can Oral Roberts pull the upset? Let’s break it down:
Oral Roberts vs. Duke odds, spread and total
Oral Roberts vs. Duke prediction and pick
The Golden Eagles enter with the nation’s longest active winning streak of 17 games, led by Abmas, who is averaging over 22 points per game this season. Abmas is a key cog from the 2021 team, but this roster is arguably better with 7’5″ big man Conner Vanover, who transferred from Arkansas this season.
Vanover will shut down the interior, he’s top five in block rate this season, and Abmas will carve up Duke’s porous ball screen defense that has struggled to slow down dynamic guard play all season. The Blue Devils biggest struggles this season came to the likes of North Carolina State and Miami, who have guards that get down hill and open up the floor for the opposing offense. Abmas has a ton of upside in this game.
On the other side, Duke’s offense is firing during their nine game winning streak, but this is a roster that struggles to score from the perimeter. The team is shooting 36% from three during their nine game heater, 109th in that time span, but on the year this is still a below average shooting team on the year.
With Vanover down low, and Abmas cooking on offense, there are real concerns for the Blue Devils in this one. The defense doesn’t turn opponents over, 273rd in generating TO’s this season, and Oral Roberts is No. 1 in turnover rate this season.
I don’t trust the Blue Devils offense to outpace the best scorer on the floor with NCAA Tournament experience in Abmas. I think Oral Roberts keeps this one close and is live for an upset.
Track all of Reed’s bets at Betstamp HERE!
Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
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