Duke Blue Devils vs North Carolina Tar Heels Prediction, 3/4/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Duke Blue Devils vs North Carolina Tar Heels

Date: Saturday, March 4, 2023

Location: Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill, NC

TV: ESPN

The Duke Blue Devils (22-8) are hitting the road to Dean E. Smith Center on Saturday where they will attempt to beat the North Carolina Tar Heels (19-11).

The Duke Blue Devils took the court against North Carolina State and notched a win by a score of 71-67 in their last contest. When it comes to fouls, the Blue Devils ended up with 12 while North Carolina State finished the game with 20 fouls. They knocked down 8 out of their 28 shots from beyond the perimeter. North Carolina State walked away from this one shooting 87.5% at the free throw line by burying 7 of their 8 attempts. Moreover, North Carolina State snagged 33 rebounds (12 offensive, 21 defensive), but wrapped up the game with no rejections. North Carolina State totaled 6 assists and had 4 steals for the matchup. When discussing defending, Duke allowed their opponent to shoot 38.2% from the floor on 26 out of 68 shooting. They also distributed 6 dimes in this contest while forcing the other team into 6 turnovers and getting 2 steals. Regarding rebounding, they compiled a total of 43 with 14 of them being offensive. From the charity stripe, the Blue Devils made 23 of their 29 attempts for a percentage of 79.3%. Duke finished the contest having earned a 41.8% field goal percentage (23 of 55) and made 2 out of their 19 3-point attempts.

Jeremy Roach is a player who was a major contributor for the matchup. He ended up walking away with 20 points on 9 out of 19 shooting. He was on the court for 37 minutes and snagged 1 rebound. He finished the contest at 47.4% from the field and dished out 2 assists.

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Duke heads into this matchup with a win-loss mark of 22-8 on the season. They are averaging 72.1 pts per contest (174th in the country) while hitting 44.6% from the field. The Blue Devils are hitting 33.0% on shots from beyond the arc (206 of 625) and 76.8% from the charity stripe. As a team, Duke is collecting 39.3 rebounds per game and has accounted for 443 dimes this season, which ranks 77th in the nation in terms of passing the rock. They turn the ball over 12.3 times per contest and as a basketball team are committing 15.2 personal fouls per contest.

On defense, the Blue Devils are able to force 11.2 turnovers per game while drawing 16.8 personal fouls. They give up 31.0% on shots from beyond the arc and they are 33rd in college hoops in points per game allowed (64.0). The Blue Devils are giving up a FG percentage of 41.2% (718 of 1,741) and they surrender 30.8 rebounds per game as a group. They are ranked 92nd in college basketball in allowing assists with 343 conceded so far this year.

For their last game, the North Carolina Tar Heels took home the win by a final score of 77-66 against Florida State. Concerning cleaning up the glass, North Carolina allowed Florida State to collect 31 overall (8 offensive). They finished 20.0% from distance by connecting on 3 out of 15 and walked away from this one shooting 13 out of 21 from the charity stripe (61.9%). The Tar Heels allowed Florida State to knock down 25 of their 60 attempts from the field which had them sitting at 41.7% for the matchup. When the final whistle blew, the Tar Heels shot 23 out of 53 from the floor which had them sitting at 43.4%. In regard to three-point shots, North Carolina converted 14 out of their 29 attempts (48.3%). They were able to bury 17 of them for a rate of 70.8%. Florida State earned 18 fouls for this game which got the Tar Heels to the free throw line for a total of 24 tries. They turned the ball over 14 times, while recording 5 steals for this game. The Tar Heels recorded 31 defensive rebounds and 8 offensive boards totaling 39 for the contest.

RJ Davis ended up being a factor for the Tar Heels for the matchup. He racked up 19 points in his 38 minutes on the court and had 4 assists in this contest. He knocked down 7 out of 13 in the matchup for a rate of 53.8%, and earned 4 rebounds.

North Carolina has a mark of 19-11 for the campaign. The Tar Heels are committing 17.0 fouls per contest and they connect on 73.9% from the charity stripe. They are dishing out assists 12.1 times per game (269th in the country) and they are losing possession via turnover 10.9 times per game. North Carolina has accumulated 2,313 pts for the season (77.1 per contest) and they grab 39.9 boards per game. On the offensive side of the court, the Tar Heels are connecting on 43.6% from the field, which is 239th in the nation.

The Tar Heels are ranked 229th in the nation in PPG allowed with 71.6. They are able to force 10.6 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 43.4% from the field (161st in college basketball). The North Carolina defense gives up 33.2% on shots from 3-point land (198 of 597) and their opponents are connecting on 70.3% of their foul shots. They have surrendered 11.4 dimes and 34.4 boards per contest, which has them ranked 88th and 208th in college hoops.

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take North Carolina

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