March Madness begins this week. It is one of the greatest times of the year for sports fans and gamblers. Unlike the muddled mess that college football's postseason is, with the antiquated and, at times, dull bowl system, college basketball has a single-elimination tournament. The best teams have a chance to prove it on the court, and at the end their is one unquestioned champion.
But before that, their is still one day left in the regular season, four conference winners yet to be decided. I am looking to end the regular season with a win, and go into the tournament hot.
The most anticipated game of the day is the ACC championship, between Duke and North Carolina. The teams met twice this season, each coming away with a win on their home court.
In the first game, at Duke, UNC had a big early lead. But Duke rallied in the second half and won 79-73.
In game 2, UNC again took the lead, but never looked back and won convincingly 81-67. Carolina has won 9 straight since the Duke loss, and has been one of the hottest teams in the country.
However, they have not been at their best in their 2 ACC tournament games. Against Miami on Friday they were not sharp at all for most of the contest. They were down 19 with just 10 minutes to play, but a furious rally got them through. In Saturday's game, they needed overtime to beat Clemson.
Duke, meanwhile, has won both their ACC tournament game handily, beating Maryland 87-71 and Virginia Tech 77-63. They are playing their best, at the exact right time.
Duke has been ranked in the top 10 all season and currently are #5 in the country. They could be playing for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament with a win on Sunday.
This game is being played on a neutral court, in Greensboro, NC. Both teams should have equal fan support. Duke is a 3 point favorite.
Overall, Duke is the better team. They have the ACC player of the year in Nolan Smith, in addition to a host of players that could be playing the NBA at some point. Forward Kyle Singler can take over games. As can guard Seth Curry.
And Duke has shown in the ACC tournament that now that the season has gotten into crunch time, they are ready. I look for Duke to win this game and draw away late to cover the points.
And then its on to the big dance. Duke has a serious chance to end up the last team standing. Much more to follow on that. For now ...
*** Take Duke, -3
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