Duke vs. Virginia: Game Preview, Prediction
By Tim Letcher
@TimLetcher
Michael Thomas Schroyer, USA TODAY SPORTS
The Duke Blue Devils face their second Top 10 opponent of the week on Saturday when they visit the second-ranked Virginia Cavaliers in Charlottesville.
On Wednesday night, Duke lost, on the road, to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish 77-73 in a hard-fought battle. Freshman standout Jahlil Okafor led Duke with 22 points and 17 rebounds, but it wasn’t enough to prevent the Blue Devils from falling to 17-3 overall and 4-3 in the ACC. Duke hurt itself at the line, making just 10-of-20 free throws in the game.
There is little time to dwell on what could have been for head coach Mike Krzyzewski and his team, as they now face one of the nation’s two unbeaten teams in Virginia (the Kentucky Wildcats are also undefeated).
Okafor, a national player of the year candidate, leads the team in scoring (18.7 per game) and rebounding (9.4) on the season. Quinn Cook averages 14.4 points per outing, while Tyus Jones (10.7) and Justise Winslow (10.7) are also double-figure scorers.
Virginia has had the week off after surviving a big challenge from the Virginia Tech Hokies on Sunday. Head coach Tony Bennett and his team are 19-0 this year, including 7-0 in the ACC. Virginia does it with defense, holding opponents to just 49.2 points per game, which is the best in the country.
Junior guard Justin Anderson leads the Cavaliers in scoring at 13.9 points per game. Malcolm Brogdon scores 13.3 per contest, while Anthony Gill posts 11.3 per outing.
Virginia will have a big challenge in stopping Okafor, who has been playing extremely well lately. If the Cavaliers can find a way to stop him without opening up too many three-point shots, they should prevail. Here’s saying that they will.
Final score prediction: Virginia 61, Duke 58
Tim Letcher is a contributing writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @TimLetcher , on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.
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