Pitt vs. No. 4 Duke Preview: Storylines, Betting Odds & More

Pitt men’s basketball is sitting on a three-game losing streak, and the road does not get any easier with the nation’s fourth-ranked team coming to town Tuesday night.

The Panthers take on the Duke Blue Devils, a team that ranks in the top four in the AP Poll, NET and KenPom.

Duke leads the ACC with a 21-2 overall record and 10-1 mark in conference play, while the Panthers sit in last place with a 9-15 overall and 2-9 league record.

Pitt is 2-8 against Duke in the last 10 meetings. Last season, Pitt fell to the Blue Devils at Cameron Indoor, 76-47. Pitt shot 31 percent from the field and 62.5 percent from the free-throw line in that contest. Cameron Corhen was the only Panther in double figures with 11 points. Cooper Flagg had 19 points and 10 rebounds in the win for Duke.

Pitt has not beat Duke at home since January 19, 2021 when it won 79-73.

Pitt Outlook

Pitt has posted its third three-game losing streak of the season. The Panthers have managed to prevent any four-game losing skids on the year, going 3-0 after those stretches.

On Saturday, Pitt lost at home to SMU, 86-76. Jaron Pierre Jr. and Boopie Miller surpassed the 20-point mark for the Mustangs as the team shot 57.1 percent from the floor and 42.9 percent from three.

The Panthers shot 36.1 percent from the floor and went 8-for-33 (24.2%) from beyond the arc. Corhen scored 15 on 6-of-10 shooting, while Barry Dunning Jr. registered 12 points and Nojus Indrusaitis added 10.

Pitt’s last victory came against Wake Forest at home on Jan. 27 with an 80-76 overtime win. Dunning and Roman Siulepa paced the Panthers with 15 points each, while the latter also added 15 rebounds.

In terms of overall scoring, Brandin Cummings leads the Panthers with 12.5 points per game. However, he will miss his third consecutive game with an ankle injury. Head coach Jeff Capel said Monday that “there is a possibility that he could miss the rest of the season.”

Corhen is second on the Panthers with 12.2 points and leads Pitt with 7.4 rebounds per game. Dunning is averaging 11.5 points per game, while shooting 45.4 percent from the field. Siulepa and guard Damarco Minor are just under 10 points per game.

Pitt is second-to-last in the ACC when it comes to scoring with 70.8 points per game. Defensively, the Panthers allow 71.5 points per game. Pitt shoots 43.4 percent from the field, while opposing teams shoot 45.6 percent.

The Panthers are also 17th in the league in 3-point defense, allowing teams to shoot 35.2 percent from beyond the arc. Pitt shoots just 33.3 percent from deep. Pitt holds a +3.0 mark in terms of rebounding margin.

Duke

HEAD COACH

Jon Scheyer (4th)

Jon Scheyer is in his fourth season leading Duke after succeeding Hall of Fame coach Mike Kryzewski. Scheyer was apart of Kryzewski’s staff since the 2013-14 season.

Scheyer has maintained the elite pace for the Blue Devils with each of his first three seasons surpassing 27 wins. Last year, Duke posted a 35-4 overall record and 19-1 mark in ACC play as the Blue Devils advanced to the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament before falling to Houston by three points.

DUKE PREVIEW

Duke suffered just its second setback of the season on Saturday when it lost, 71-68, to rival and 14th-ranked North Carolina in Chapel Hill. Seth Trimble, who scored 16 points in the win for UNC, hit the game-winning shot at the buzzer to initiate a court-storming at the Dean Smith Center.

Throughout the game, Duke shot 45.2 percent from the field and went 7-of-19 (36.8%) from three. The Blue Devils held a 38-26 edge on the glass and scored 36 points in the paint.

Cameron Boozer recorded his 12th double-double of the season with 24 points and 11 rebounds. Dame Sarr added 13 points, while Isaiah Evans scored 11.

Duke’s only other loss came against No. 19 Texas Tech in the SentinelOne Classic at Madison Square Garden back on Dec. 20. The Blue Devils have defeated Tennessee on the road, Texas, No. 24 Kansas, No. 22 Arkansas, No. 15 Florida, No. 7 Michigan State on the road, No. 20 Louisville and No. 24 SMU this season.

Prior to the UNC loss, Duke defeated Boston College, 67-49. Boozer scored 19 and collected 12 rebounds in that win with Evans adding 12 points.

Boozer, a 6-9 freshman and projected top-three NBA pick, leads the ACC and is second nationally in scoring with 23.3 points per game. He also leads the conference with 10 rebounds per game. He shoots 57.6 percent from the field, which is fifth in the ACC.

Evans scores 14.0 points per game, while leading the Blue Devils with 53 made threes on the season. Duke’s third leading scorer, Patrick Ngongba II, was listed as questionable on Monday. He scores 10.7 points and collects 6.2 rebounds per game. Caleb Foster averages 25.9 minutes per game as he scores 8.7 points and shoots 45.7 percent from the field.

Duke is seventh in the country when it comes to scoring margin at +19.5. The Blue Devils score 83.4 points per game and own the best defense in the league, limiting teams to 63.9 points per contest. Duke holds teams to an ACC-best 39.3 percent from the field, while the Blue Devils are second in the conference, shooting 49.7 percent from the floor.

The Blue Devils boast the best rebounding margin in the ACC as well at +9.9 as they collect 39.8 rebounds per game.

Pitt-Duke Rankings

Duke is the third-ranked team in the nation, according to the NET. Pitt sits at No. 123. This is a Quad 1 opportunity for Pitt. The Panthers are 0-9 in Quad 1 matchups this season. This is a Quad 2 game for Duke.

According to Kenpom.com, Duke ranks No. 3, while Pitt sits at No. 107.

Spread

Pitt is a 17.5-point home underdog, according to BetMGM. Pitt is +1100 on the Money Line and the over/under is set at 136.5 points.

TV

Pitt vs. Duke will be shown on ESPN with Kevin Brown (play-by-play) and Cory Alexander (analyst) on the call.

Radio

Pitt vs. Duke will be live on 93.7 The Fan as well with Bill Hillgrove (play-by-play) and Curtis Aiken (analyst) calling the action.