Duke vs Virginia Tech Picks and Predictions Dec 22
Duke vs Virginia Tech Betting Preview
WagerTalk college basketball handicapper Tony Finn offers his Duke vs Virginia Tech ACC Basketball betting preview for Wednesday, December 22. At the time of posting, the Blue Devils are holding steady as 9-point favorites in their conference opener, with the total sitting at 138.5 points.
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| Wed, Dec 22 | College Basketball Betting Notes |
|---|---|
| Point Spread: | Duke Blue Devils -9 vs Virginia Tech Hokies |
| Total: | 138.5 Points |
| Game Time: | 9:00pm ET / 6:00pm PT |
| Arena: | Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, NC |
| TV: | ESPN2 |
Duke vs Virginia Tech Predictions
The college basketball song and dance that presents itself when the time arrives is full steam ahead tonight on Tabaco Road. The retirement tour of Hall of Fame coach Mike Krzyzewski enters conference play tonight when second-ranked Duke Blue Devils and the Virginia Tech Hokies begin their Atlantic Coast Conference schedule tonight in Durham, N.C.
Cameron Indoor Arena on what will soon be Coach K’s Court features the Blue Devils opening ACC-play against the Virginia Tech Hokies. The No. 2 Blue Devils and Hokies are center stage on Wednesday night, with both programs’ first league contest scheduled to tipoff at 9:00 pm ET on the Duke campus.
The Blue Devils (10-1, 8-0 at home) and the Hokies (8-4, 2-1 on the road) are forecast to battle for the conference crown and the North Carolina Tar Heels, Florida State Seminoles, and Virginia Cavaliers. The Devils and Hokies current sit atop the conference standings in scoring margin. Coach K’s men own a 21.7 margin of victory, and the Hokies check in with a 15.1 dichotomy.
The Blue Devils are 9-point favorites over the Hokies in tonight’s ESPN featured event per Circa of Las Vegas. The downtown Race and Sportsbook set the total at 139.5. There has been no immediate interest in this game from sharp global groups. When this game preview went to press, the opening spread and over-under held serve with Tuesday’s overnight lines.
On Saturday, the Blue Devils earned an 87-56 victory over the Elon Phoenix at Cameron Indoor. The win over Elon followed the COVID-19 cancellation of two different opponents. Tech is coming off its most impressive performance of the season with an 86-49 wire-to-wire rout of a good St. Bonaventure squad.
The Hokies cast of characters Hunter Cattoor, Storm Murphy, and Keve Aluma carried the Virginia Tech torch in the rout of the Bonnies, accounting for 51 of Tech’s 86 points. Cattoor tied his career-high in 3-point makes with five with a 100 percent perfect 5-of-5 from distance.
The Hokies last won at Cameron in 2007, defeating a No. 5 ranked Devils squad behind Zabian Dowdell and his 20 points.
Virginia Tech Hokies
- Since the Hokies became members of the ACC, the Blue Devils own a 17-7 series advantage.
- Hokies won the lone contest in 2020-21, earning a 74-67 win in Blacksburg.
- Player to watch: Hunter Cattoor has scored 10-points or more in five of the school’s last six games. Catoor registered 21 points on a 6-for-7 shooting in the Devils Hall of Fame Shootout win versus St. Bonaventure this past weekend. vs. St.
- This season, the Hokies’ losses have come against a ranked Memphis Tigers and Xavier Muskateers’ teams. As well, against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons and Dayton Flyers.
Duke Blue Devils
- Raise your hand if it surprises you Duke has not won a share of the ACC regular-season title since the 2009-10 season that it has been over a decade since the Blue Devils earned an outright ACC regular-season title (since the 2005-06 season).
- Duke holds a 50-11 advantage in the all-time series with Virginia Tech.
- Saturday’s win over Elon was the final non-conference game of a regular season for soon to be retired coach K.
- Following tonight’s game versus VT, the Blue Devils receive a Christmas break and won’t return to action a week from tonight at Clemson. Coach K and his players will play on New Year’s Day (January 1). Notre Dame.
The WagerTalk team will follow the speed limit tonight and mind our Ps and Qs by not stepping in front of a sold-out, loud as hell Cameron Indoor Arena and the real beginning to the Coach K Farewell Tour by staking the Devils and laying the wood.
Wednesday on WagerTalk TV:
☕12pm ET: WagerTalk Today
🏀1:45pm ET: NCAAB Tip-Off
🏈3:15pm ET: Best Damn College Football Show
🏀4:15pm ET: NBA Tip-Off
🗣️6pm ET: Hustle Pod
💰Evening: Bet On It
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Duke vs Virginia Tech Preview from GoldSheet
The Hokies ran through St. Bonaventure 86-49 in their most recent game, dominating from start to finish in a Hall of Fame event at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte. Despite the presence of an elite shot-blocker in Osun Osunniyi, who got himself four swats in the loss, Virginia Tech shot 55 percent from the field and held the Bonnies to 33 percent shooting in its most impressive performance of the season, less than two weeks removed from opening ACC play with a lopsided loss to Wake Forest.
The Hokies will attempt to avoid an 0-2 start in the league while Duke debuts in the final conference opener for Mike Krzyzewski. The Blue Devils have posted blowout wins over South Carolina State, Appalachian State and Elon since suffering their lone loss against Ohio State in a game where they collapsed late in Columbus. The Hokies will look to dig in at Cameron by defending the arc successfully, which makes Trevor Keels the key to it all for Duke since he and Wendell Moore are the x-factors for Coach K’s final team. Expect to see Virginia Tech hang around for the duration since classes are out for Winter break, which may impact how crazy they are at Cameron for this key home game.
NCAAB Tip-Off Show
Get your daily fix of college hoops betting information with Joe Raineri and a rotating panel of handicapping guests. The Happy Hour Tip-Off Show will broadcast Monday through Friday at 1:45pm ET / 10:45am PT. Pull up a barstool and join us as we break down tonight’s college basketball card from a sports betting perspective. Wednesday’s featured games include Tennessee vs Arizona; Duke vs Virginia Tech; and Saint Mary’s vs Missouri State.
WagerTalk Live Odds Screen
WagerTalk’s live odds screen features up-to-the-minute lines from a variety of offshore and domestic sports books. Track the college basketball point spreads, moneylines, first half lines and betting percentages for all of Wednesday’s NCAAB games, including this Duke vs Virginia Tech showdown, from your desktop or phone.
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