UCF Knights vs Duke Blue Devils: Predictions, Odds and Roster Notes

Where: Colonial Life Arena, in Columbia, SC, USA.

When: Sunday, March 24th at 5:15pm EST.

How (TV/Radio): CBS; March Madness Live Stream on ncaa.com

UCF Knights

Head Coach: Johnny Dawkins {Overall: 24-8, .750 W-L% | Conference: 13-5, T-3rd in AAC}

Despite tallying their first NCAA tournament win in school history on Friday, the UCF Knights will set their eyes on upending one of college basketballs blueblood programs. UCF’s meeting with Duke on Sunday, will be the first ever between the two schools.

The Knights earned their historic victory the previous round by beating VCU 73-58. Senior guard B.J. Taylor led the way in a balanced attack with 15 points on a paltry 5 of 14 shooting, while 7-6 center, Tacko Fall stuffed the box score with 13 points, 18 rebounds, and 5 blocked shots. Fall’s rim protection played a critical role in the win, as the Rams were forced to score from the perimeter and shot a poor 23% from long range.

Duke Blue Devils

Head Coach: Mike Krzyzewski {Overall: 30-5, .857 W-L% | Conference: 14-4, 3rd in ACC}

With their immense preseason projections putting a big target on their backs, the Duke Blue Devils will look to survive and advance against an upstart UCF team. While many fans are wondering if Zion Williamson will put Tacko Fall on a poster in this game, Coach K is much more focused on making sure the season does not end before the second weekend of March Madness.

Duke had no issues in their first round contest against North Dakota State on Friday. The Blue Devils hammered the Bison 85-62, as Williamson and his fellow freshman stars, R.J. Barrett and Cam Reddish, combined 63 points in the win. With three-point shooting a season long issue for Duke, this game was a welcome sight, as the Blue Devils were 8 of 19 from downtown.

UCF Roster Notes

There are no injuries or roster changes to report for UCF.

Duke Roster Notes

Junior forward Jack White is listed as doubtful for this game with a hamstring injury suffered against Florida State in the ACC tournament final on March 16th.

Head-to-Head: Terrell Allen vs Tre Jones

Terrell Allen

Point Guard | 6-3, 185lb (190cm, 83kg) | DeMatha Catholic HS | Upper Marlboro, MD | Junior

6.8 PPG | 4.2 APG | 3.1 RPG | 1.3 SPG | 0.0 BPG | 1.7 TOV | .434 FG% | .403 3P%

Tre Jones

Point Guard | 6-2, 183lb (188cm, 83kg) | Apple Valley HS | Apple Valley, MN | Freshman

9.1 PPG | 5.3 APG | 3.8 RPG | 2.0 SPG | 0.2 BPG | 1.5 TOV | .411 FG% | .241 3P%

Despite this game involving a great deal of star power, the key match-up to look out for will be at the point. These relatively lesser known players have not been lighting up the scoreboard, but they have played a critical role in ensuring that their offenses are running efficiently.

With the Knights already running with two solid scorers in B.J. Taylor and Aubrey Dawkins, coach Johnny Dawkins has ensured that the offense is conducted by a low maintenance floor general in Terrell Allen. The former Drexel Dragon is a classic Jack-of-All-Trades as a lead guard. He is not putting up eye-popping assist numbers ilke Ja Morant or playing ball-hawking defense like Ashton Hagans. However, he has taken care of the ball by committing more than one turnover in less than half of UCF’s games.

If you looked at Tre Jones’ numbers this season, it would be easy to forget that he was the 13th ranked recruit in the 2018 class. When your teammates are ranked 1-3 in that class, statistics are bound to be sacrificed for a chance at a national championship. Jones, like Allen, is far from perfect as his 24.1% clip from three-point range can attest to that. WIth that being said, the younger brother of Tyus Jones has fit into his role like a glove, leading the ACC in both assists and steals.

UCF vs Duke Predictions and Odds

Oddsmakers do not see UCF as a significant threat, as the Knights are listed as 13 point underdogs against Duke. Meanwhile, the most popular over/under amongst sportsbooks is currently at 143.5.