Jeff Capel faces his former team when the No. 5 seed Pittsburgh Panthers square off against the No. 4 Duke Blue Devils in a quarterfinal game of the 2023 ACC Tournament on Thursday at Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, N.C. The 48-year-old Capel was a four-year starter for the Blue Devils from 1993-97, leading the team to 83 wins and an appearance in the 1994 national championship game. He also spent seven seasons as an assistant coach in Durham (2011-18) before becoming head coach of the Panthers. This season Capel was named the ACC Coach of the Year after leading Pitt to a 22-10 record. The winner advances to face the winner of Miami vs. Wake Forest in the semifinals on Friday.
Tipoff is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. ET. The Blue Devils are favored by 5.5 points in the latest Duke vs. Pitt odds from Caesars Sportsbook, while the over/under for total points scored is 138.5. Before locking in any Pitt vs. Duke picks, you need to see the college basketball predictions and betting advice from SportsLine's advanced computer simulation model.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every Division I college basketball game 10,000 times. The model enters conference tournament week 76-51 on all-top rated college basketball picks this season, returning nearly $1,200 for $100 players. Anybody who has followed it has seen huge returns.
Now the model has zeroed in on Duke vs. Pitt and just locked in its picks and CBB predictions. You can head to SportsLine now to see the model's picks. Now, here are several college basketball odds and betting lines for Pitt vs. Duke:
- Duke vs. Pitt spread: Blue Devils -5.5
- Duke vs. Pitt over/under: 138.5 points
- Duke vs. Pitt money line: Blue Devils -292, Panthers +235
- DUKE: The Blue Devils ranks fifth in Div. I in rebound margin (8.2 rebounds per game).
- PITT: The Panthers are second in the ACC in 3-pointers per game (9.3).
- Duke vs. Pitt picks: See picks at SportsLine
Why Duke can cover
Kyle Filipowski is one of the top freshmen in the country. The 7-footer from Westtown, N.Y., is averaging 15.0 points and 9.2 rebounds per game and leads all freshmen nationally in double-doubles (14). Filipowski, who was named the ACC Rookie of the Year, is one of just eight power conference players to average at least 15.0 points and 9.0 rebounds a game.
In addition, Duke has had Pitt's number in the head-to-head series. The Blue Devils have won eight of the last 10 meetings against the Panthers and lead the overall series 15-8. That includes a 77-69 meeting in Durham earlier this season.
Why Pittsburgh can cover
Pitt has one of the best players in the conference in Jamarius Burton. A 6-foot-4 guard from Charlotte, Burton is one of five players in the country averaging at least 15.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 4.0 assists per game, while shooting more than 49% from the field. For his efforts this season he was named to the all-ACC first team.
In addition, the Panthers have the best sixth man in the conference in Nike Sibande. A 6-foot-4 guard from Indianapolis, Sibande averaged 8.2 points (including 9.7 points during conference play) and 3.8 rebounds per game. On Tuesday he was named the ACC Sixth Man of the Year, becoming the first Pitt player to earn that award.
How to make Pitt vs. Duke picks
SportsLine's model is leaning Over on the total, projecting 142 combined points. The model also says one side of the spread has all the value. You can only see the model's picks at SportsLine.
So who wins Duke vs. Pittsburgh? And which side of the spread has all the value? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the spread you need to jump on, all from the model that has crushed its college basketball picks, and find out.
