NCAA Tournament: Duke vs. North Dakota State fearless prediction and game preview.
Broadcast
Date: Friday, March 22
Game Time: 7:10 ET
Venue: Colonial Life Arena, Columbia, SC
Network: CBS
All You Really Need To Know About Duke (28-5)
(ACC), NCAA NET Rank: 3. East 1-seed
With a healthy, motivated, and rejuvenated Zion Williamson back from his injured knee – and helped by a team of Nike people to get the right shoes – to go along with RJ Barrett, Cam Reddish and all the other talented Blue Devils, everything is rolling at the right time. The offense pop is there, but when it has everything focused, the defense is suffocating, too.
No one blocks more shots, few teams generate more steals, and the rebounds and extra passes are there, too. So what’s the Achilles heel? Lapses – the Blue Devils seem to drift at times, relying on the spurt that’s almost always there. They stink from three and are mediocre on the line, but that’s nitpicking. The season is a total failure if this group doesn’t win the national title.
All You Really Need To Know About North Dakota State (19-15)
(Summit), NCAA NET Rank: 222. East 16-seed
The Bison had to hold on for dear life in a thrilling win over North Carolina Central. They blew a big lead, but had the toughness to come back and finish by buckling down late and hitting their free throws.
So what can they do to stay alive against the Blue Devils? They’ve got to start hitting from three and keep going. Zion will be Zion, and there won’t be any second chances, but the offense is just dangerous enough to keep the pressure on. This has to be a shootout, and it’s going to take a fearless approach to make it interesting. That means three-point bomber Jared Samuelson has to be brilliant from the opening tip.
What’s Going To Happen
NDSU couldn’t handle NC Central’s Raasean Davis, what will it do against Zion? It’s going to be a rough day on the inside with the Blue Devils owning the boards and doing everything right to keep the Bison from getting any second chances. Duke isn’t going to take this opener off.
Fearless Prediction & Line
Duke 86, North Dakota State 64
Line: COMING, o/u: COMING
ATS Confidence: COMING
5: Watching games by Vegas pool working on fruity drink No. 3
1: Watching game online while doing TPS reports in your cubicle
