Purdue at Duke

This tournament will be known perhaps more for the disappointing injuries, which will always leave behind the “what could have been” scenario. West Virginia is the latest with a key player going down, joining this Purdue team who lost Robbie Hummel. Purdue needed everything it could muster to pull out a two-point win vs. A&M, but Duke is a much more accomplished foe. The Blue Devils have been a tourney disaster for the last six years, but there are certainly signs that this Duke team has the talent and mental toughness to cut down the nets this year. Duke is tenacious on the defensive end and we have seen some foreshadowing of how Purdue could struggle without Hummel, and Coach K will exploit that. The Boilermakers are not as lethal as a dog of 7-12.5 as they are 7-16-1 ATS in their last 24 and it all ends for them here. I like Duke in this one.