Baylor Bears vs Duke Blue Devils Prediction, 12/20/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Baylor Bears vs Duke Blue Devils

Date: Wednesday, December 20, 2023

Location: Madison Square Garden in New York, NY

TV: ESPN

The Duke Blue Devils (7-3) will take on the Baylor Bears (9-1) at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday.

The Baylor Bears played Michigan State and took a loss by a final of 88-64 in their last contest. Baylor wrapped up the contest having earned a 47.9% field goal percentage (23 out of 48) and converted 6 of 19 shots from beyond the arc. At the charity stripe, the Bears made 12 of their 19 attempts for a percentage of 63.2%. Regarding grabbing boards, they compiled 14 with 4 of them being offensive. They also distributed 13 assists in the matchup while creating 14 turnovers and earning 8 steals. When talking about the defense, Baylor allowed 63.3% from the floor on 31 out of 49 shooting. Michigan State earned 18 assists and had 15 steals for the game. In addition, Michigan State had 27 rebounds (7 offensive, 20 defensive), but didn't notch a rejection. Michigan State finished shooting 64.3% from the free throw line by making 18 of their 28 tries. They buried 8 of 12 attempts from distance. Regarding fouls, the Bears ended up finishing with 24 while Michigan State finished the game with 21 fouls.

Rayj Dennis is one guy who came through in this matchup. He shot 55.6% from the floor and earned 7 assists. He played for 34 mins and also grabbed 1 board. He recorded 11 points on 5 out of 9 shooting.

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Baylor will take the court with a record of 9-1 so far this season. They currently have an average of 88.4 points per contest (8th in D-1) while going 51.7% from the floor. The Bears are shooting 42.1% on shots from 3-point land (88 of 209) and 73.2% from the charity stripe. As a team, Baylor is collecting 38.0 rebounds per contest and has accumulated 163 dimes so far this year, which ranks 115th in college hoops in terms of passing the ball. They turn it over 12.7 times per contest and as a basketball team they commit 16.3 fouls per contest.

When they are on the defensive end, the Bears are able to force 13.4 turnovers per game and they draw 21.8 personal fouls. They concede 31.0% on 3-pointers and they are ranked 150th in college basketball in PPG allowed (69.6). The Bears are giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 42.8% (256 of 598) and they relinquish 29.3 boards per game as a group. They are ranked 139th in college basketball in allowing assists to the opposition with 130 conceded so far this season.

The last time they took the court, the Duke Blue Devils walked away with a victory by a final of 89-68 when they played Hofstra. The Blue Devils corralled 23 defensive rebounds and 8 offensive boards for a total of 31 in this contest. They coughed up the ball 10 times, while recording 6 steals for the matchup. Hofstra was called for 12 fouls in this matchup which got the Blue Devils to the charity stripe for a total of 14 attempts. They were able to bury 12 of those for a rate of 85.7%. In terms of 3-pointers, Duke buried 11 out of their 22 attempts (50.0%). When all was said and done, the Blue Devils ended up shooting 33 for 60 from the floor which gave them a percentage of 55.0%. The Blue Devils permitted Hofstra to make 25 out of their 50 attempts from the field which had them sitting at 50.0% for the game. They shot 41.7% from behind the 3-point line by going 10 out of 24 and walked away from this one shooting 8 out of 10 at the free throw line (80.0%). Concerning team rebounding, Duke permitted Hofstra to get 22 in all (2 on the offensive glass).

Kyle Filipowski ended up being a major contributor for the Blue Devils in this matchup. He knocked down 10 out of 16 in the game giving him a field goal percentage of 62.5%, and totaled 12 rebounds. He had 28 points in his 36 mins of playing time and accounted for 8 assists for this contest.

Duke has a record of 7-3 so far this season. When it comes to offensive execution, the Blue Devils are connecting on 48.5% from the field, which is ranked 38th in the nation. Duke has totaled 816 points on the season (81.6 per contest) and they pull in 36.4 rebounds per game. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 16.5 times per game (48th in college hoops) and they are turning it over 9.0 times per contest. The Blue Devils are committing 15.7 personal fouls every game and they connect on 72.5% from the free throw line.

The Blue Devils on defense are ranked 70th in college basketball in points given up per game with 66.1. They have forced 12.6 turnovers on a nightly basis and have allowed teams to shoot 43.1% from the field (210th in D-1). The Duke defense allows 32.3% on 3-pointers (70 of 217) and their opponents are connecting on 69.5% of their free throw shots. They have relinquished 13.7 assists and 31.5 boards per contest, ranking them 263rd and 47th in Division 1.

Who will win tonight's NCAA basketball game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Duke

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