Duke vs TCU Prediction and Preview: NCAA Tournament Second Round

Duke vs TCU Game Preview: Will the Real Blue Devils Show Up?

Duke vs TCU How To Watch

Date: Saturday, March 21
Venue: Bon Secours Wellness Arena, Greenville, SC
Time: 5:15 pm ET
TV: CBS
Streaming: March Madness Live App, Paramount+, HBO Max
Teams: (1) Duke 33-2, (9) TCU 23-11
CFN Spring Football Rankings
TCU 33 | Duke 53
First Round
Duke 71, Siena 65
TCU 66, Ohio State 64

- CFN NCAA Tournament Schedule, Previews

Key Stats

- Duke only came up with three steals in the win over Siena.

 - TCU hit only nine of 14 free throws in the win over Ohio State.

Why TCU Will Win: Take A Breath and Slow Things Down

Okay, so what was in Duke’s struggle against Siena? It couldn’t hit anything from three, but that’s not too crazy.

The Blue Devils are just okay from the outside, but they rebounded well and cranked up the defense late, but more than anything else,

Siena bogged the game down. The tempo slowed, and Duke didn’t adjust early on to the pace.

For TCU, it might want to move a bit, but it has to take a few moments to slow things down and not let Duke get into a rhythm. It only scored three fastbreak points against Ohio State - it can do this.

TCU should be able to hang around on offensive rebounds and second chance points against a Blue Devil front that needs to dominate on the boards to get everything else flowing.

Why Duke Will Win: TCU Doesn’t Hit Free Throws

TCU dominated Ohio State for most of the first round game, but it started to buckle late, and missing five of the 14 free throws didn’t help put it away.

Every point for the Horned Frogs will come at a premium, but they’re among the worst teams still in the tournament on the free throw line, making just under 71%.

Overall, TCU doesn’t normally make enough shots. It finds ways to get points, but it’s not a good shooting team and isn’t anything great from three.

There’s a chance it gets as hot as it was early on against the Buckeyes, and Siena almost pulled it off against Duke, shooting 38%, but …

Duke vs TCU Prediction, Betting Lines

Duke isn’t shooting 41% again like it did in the first round.

This is one of the best midrange shooting teams in the country, and it’s even better at coming up with the tough defense that stops runs fast.

The Blue Devils won’t let TCU ever get comfortable with an energy that wasn’t there on Thursday.

TCU was able to slow things down in a four-point loss to Michigan back in November, but it won’t be able to handle a late first half Blue Devil burst.

Prediction: Duke 78, TCU 69
Consensus Line: Duke -11.5, o/u: 139.5
ATS Confidence out of 5: 3

Consensus Line from BetMGM, Caesars, DraftKings, and FanDuel. Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.