The Duke Blue Devils don\u2019t need to win the ACC tournament to punch their ticket to the Big Dance but they are headed in that direction anyway. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
ACC Semifinal Matchup<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Preview<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Duke<\/strong><\/p>\n Friday they toughed out a 4 point win against Virginia Tech without forward Ryan Kelly. \u00a0The offense was very sluggish, shooting an awful 5 for 26 from the three point line but you are going to win most of the time when you give up only 56 points. \u00a0They have a really good shot to advance if they can put together a similar defensive effort on Saturday against a team not known for scoring.<\/p>\n When they need a bucket the Blue Devils rely on scoring frosh Austin Rivers. \u00a0Rivers led with 17 points against the Hokies. \u00a0The amazing figures from that game though were courtesy of guard Tyler Thornton. \u00a0He got a little more playing time than usual and jacked up 16 shots, more than twice than he has taken in any game this year (including 13 3 point attempts with just three makes). \u00a0Clearly the game plan was to make him beat them and he couldn\u2019t. \u00a0The philosophy is sound but I expect Thornton to be a little gun shy next time out.\u00a0 [soliloquy id=”82219″]<\/p>\n Florida State<\/strong><\/p>\n The Florida State Seminoles are a hard team to play against. \u00a0They battle you all day long defensively and sometimes it looks like their opponents lose interest in scoring the ball. \u00a0They made it to the Semis by beating in state rival Miami, another team that can grind you down. \u00a0They should definitely be excited to get another crack at Duke as they really seem to relish being the underdog in the ACC.<\/p>\n With Kelly out the Seminoles will have one less offensive threat to worry about on Saturday. \u00a0That is good because their offense has been prone to stall. \u00a0At the same time they also seem to be able make big shots when they need them the most. \u00a0Against Miami their best shot maker was guard Michael Snaer. \u00a0He has oodles of talent but can be very streaky. \u00a0The key for him will be mixing up his game inside and out and playing solid defense on Austin Rivers. \u00a0No easy task.<\/p>\n
\nDuke Blue Devils (27-5) vs Florida State Seminoles (22-9)
\nSaturday March 10
\nPhilips Arena – Atlanta, GA
\n3:00PM
\nMoneyline: \u00a0No line currently listed
\nSpread: \u00a0No line currently listed
\nO\/U: \u00a0No line currently listed<\/strong><\/p>\n