Today at 2:00 p.m. ET, No. 24 SMU takes on No. 6 Duke in an ACC contest. The Blue Devils have started ACC play 3-0, while SMU is 1-1 in the conference. Duke is 4-1 against SMU but hasn’t faced each other in Durham, North Carolina, since November 1978.
Here is my best bet for today’s SMU vs. Duke college basketball matchup. The Blue Devils are -11.5 point favorites in this contest, with the over/under sitting at 157.5 points on DraftKings Sportsbook.
SMU vs. Duke (2:00 p.m. ET)
Duke is led by freshman Cameron Boozer, who is averaging 23.2 points, 9.7 rebounds, 4.2 assists, and 1.9 steals per game. Boozer is third in college basketball in scoring this season. He has lived up to all the hype and expectations, quickly becoming not just the best freshman but arguably the best player in the country. Isaiah Evans, Patrick Ngongba II, and Caleb Foster round out Duke’s double-digit scorers this season.
Throughout the first month of the season, SMU had an undefeated 8-0 record. But since then, they have gone 4-3 and are coming off a 74-70 loss to Clemson. SMU has a 20-point scorer of their own with Boopie Miller and has scored 23-plus points in three of its last four games. SMU is 31st on KenPom with the 15th-best offensive rating, but has only the 75th defensive rating in the country. SMU averages the most points per game (90.1) in the ACC, but gives up the second most points (76.7) as well. Duke is seventh on KenPom with the 10th-highest offensive and defensive ratings.
Duke has won three of its previous five games at home by at least 12 points. As is normally the case, Cameron Boozer will be the best player on the floor and presents a matchup nightmare for SMU. Boozer has scored 26-plus points in two of his last three games. This season, eight of Duke’s 14 wins have come by 12 or more points.
