Free College Basketball Picks: Alabama at Duke Odds
by George Monroy - 11/26/2013
If you didn’t know the name Jabari Parker before the start of the college basketball season, it is almost certain that you do now. The Duke Blue Devils may be starting the best freshman recruit in the nation—with all due respect to Andrew Wiggins—and a future No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft. Parker has been spectacular through six games this season and is averaging 23 points, 8.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 29 minutes worth of action. The Blue Devils may have already lost a back-and-forth matchup to the Kansas Jayhawks two weeks ago, but the group sill believes they are on the short list of teams with enough talent to win a national title.
The Alabama Crimson Tide have only played four games since the season began three weeks ago, but they are about to get their first major test when they play Duke on Wednesday night. Alabama has played well through their first set of games and are carrying a 3-1 ATS mark to go along with three double-digit victories. The team has only made the NCAA Tournament once during the last six years and will be looking to change that trend by starting with a huge victory over the No. 6 Blue Devils.
Alabama at Duke Betting Story Lines
Duke has won four straight since losing to the Jayhawks during their second game of the season, but they are coming off of a one-point victory over the Vermont Catamounts on Sunday. The Blue Devils gave up 47 second-half points and were outscored by seven points after intermission. Head coach Mike Krzyzewski called the team’s performance “unacceptable” and stated that the Blue Devils did not “respect the game” by walking onto the court believing they had already won.
Duke played well on the offensive end and had four players score double-digit points. Parker had 26 points and nine rebounds, while Rodney Hood added 22 points and seven rebounds. The team’s problem was on the defensive end where they showed little effort and oftentimes simply looked confused. The Blue Devils allowed Vermont to score 90 points on 64 percent shooting from the field.
Alabama has covered three straight spreads, and they are coming off of a 17-point win over Georgia State. The Crimson Tide shot 48 percent from the field and had eight of the nine players on their roster score points. The team grabbed 40 rebounds and held their opponents to only 24 boards for the night. Alabama is being led by Senior Trevor Releford, who is averaging 14.9 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game in 33 minutes of action. The Crimson Tide have been holding opponents to 41.8 percent shooting and 29.3 percent form the three-point line. The team, however, has not played in nearly eight days.
Alabama at Duke NCAA Betting Odds and Key Trends
Duke opened as a 7.5 point favorite over the underdog Crimson Tide, according to BetOnline, while the total was unavailable for Wednesday’s matchup. Alabama is 8-1 ATS against teams with winning SU records and 6-1 ATS following a SU win. They are also 7-2 ATS during their last nine overall games dating back to last season, but they perform poorly ATS-wise on Wednesday games, where they only have a 1-6 record in their last seven.
Duke only has a 1-4 ATS recording following a SU win dating back to last season and has the same ATS record against the SEC. The Blue Devils are also only 9-3 ATS against teams with winning SU record.
Free College Basketball Picks: Alabama at Duke Predictions
It’s almost certain that coach Mike Krzyzewski will have the Blue Devils ready to make up for their poor performance from last weekend. However, Duke is in the unenviable position of being the biggest game of the year for many of the teams that they play, and that includes the Crimson Tide. Alabama is a big college basketball program and will not be intimidated by playing a top-ranked team in the national spotlight on Wednesday night. The team can score points while still playing solid defense and grabbing rebounds. I am not sure if Alabama can actually win this game, but they are certainly talented to keep the matchup close—especially in a neutral site. Take the Crimson Tide to cover the spread.
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