North Carolina vs Duke Prediction 2/1/25 College Basketball Picks

The North Carolina Tar Heels and the Duke Blue Devils meet Saturday in college basketball action from the Cameron Indoor Stadium. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a North Carolina vs. Duke prediction.

North Carolina Recap

The North Carolina Tar Heels come into this game looking to bounce back from a 73-65 loss to Pitt last time out to fall to 13-9 on the year. After this game, North Carolina will head home for a rematch with Pitt.

Tar Heels Drop 3 Of Last 4

RJ Davis leads the Tar Heels in scoring with 17.6 PPG along with 3.8 RPG and 4 APG while Seth Trimble has 12.3 PPG with 5.4 RPG to lead the Tar Heels in rebounding and Elliot Cadeau has 10.7 PPG with 3.2 RPG and 6.1 APG on the year to lead the Tar Heels in assists. Ian Jackson has 14.7 PPG with 3.5 RPG to round out the group of double-digit scorers for North Carolina so far this season. Drake Powell and Jalen Washington each have 6.9 PPG with Washington adding 5 RPG while Powell has 3.6 RPG. As a team, North Carolina is averaging 81.7 PPG on 46.9% shooting from the field, 32.1% from three, and 74.8% from the foul line this season.

Why the North Carolina Tar Heels will win

• North Carolina has won each of its last eight Saturday road games.

Duke Recap

The Duke Blue Devils come into this game looking to keep their win streak going after a 74-64 win over NC State last time out to improve to 18-2 on the year. After this game, Duke will head on the road to take on Syracuse.

Blue Devils Looking To Extend Double-Digit Win Streak

Cooper Flagg leads Duke across the board in scoring, rebounding, and assists with 19.9 PPG, 7.9 RPG, and 4.1 APG while Kon Kneuppel has 13.1 PPG with 3.7 RPG and 2.6 APG as well this season. Tyrese Proctor has 10.4 PPG with 3.7 RPG to cap off the trio of double-digit scorers for Duke so far this season. Isaiah Evans has 6.9 PPG while Sion James has 7.6 PPG with 4.5 RPG and 3.1 APG and Khaman Maluach has 8.3 PPG with 6.2 RPG as well on the year. As a team, Duke is averaging 80 PPG on 47.4% shooting from the field, 36.3% from three, and 76.5% from the foul line this season.

Why the Duke Blue Devils will win

• Duke has won each of its last 17 games at Cameron Indoor Stadium against non-AP-ranked opponents.

Total Points Facts

• Each of North Carolina’s last 11 night games against AP-ranked opponents has produced a total of 150+ points.
• Each of Duke’s last six night games against non-AP-ranked opponents at Cameron Indoor Stadium have produced a total of 143 or fewer points.

North Carolina vs. Duke Prediction

I’m on Duke here. The Blue Devils are just too complete of a team to argue against here, and North Carolina has just been too inconsistent offensively to trust in a spot like this even in their biggest rivalry game of the year. The Tar Heels have a tendency to dig themselves into an early hole that they can’t dig out of, and that’s not something that you can afford going against the top team in the conference and one of the top teams in the country. Not often you’ll see a massive line like this in UNC-Duke, but it’s massive for a reason. Give me the Blue Devils here.