Virginia Tech vs Duke Expert Picks: January 29th Preview, Betting Odds, Injury Report and NCAAB Picks

The Virginia Tech Hokies will be hoping to use their home-court advantage on Monday night when they play host to the Duke Blue Devils, as the home team has won 5 of the last 6 contests in Blacksburg, VA! The line setters have other ideas posting the Blue Devils as slight favs, so Ej is turning to a 1st-half bet on the road team to start the week.

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• Selection: Duke -1.5 1st-Half Handicap
• Best Odds: 1.91
• Bookmaker: bet365
• Stakes: 4/10

Odds are available as of January 29. Odds may now differ.

Go with our tip at bet365In this article:

• Virginia Tech Hokies vs Duke Blue Devils Tip
• Virginia Tech Hokies vs Duke Blue Devils Game Info
• Virginia Tech Hokies vs Duke Blue Devils Betting Lines
• Virginia Tech Hokies vs Duke Blue Devils Trends
• Virginia Tech Hokies vs Duke Blue Devils Stats & Form
• Virginia Tech Hokies vs Duke Blue Devils Where to Watch
• Safer Gambling

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VIRGINIA TECH HOKIES VS DUKE BLUE DEVILS PICKS AND PREDICTION

There are only a few choices on the Monday night NCAA hoops schedule, but the first game of the night happens in Blacksburg, VA, and we are getting paid in 20 minutes tonight!

I will admit that it took one little fact to influence my decision on Duke to cover the first-half line, and it started with seeing North Carolina on deck for the Blue Devils. Why would that matter on a Monday in Blacksburg?

Virginia Tech has never struggle winning games at home against Duke no matter how good the Blue Devils have been over the last decade. The Hokies have spoiled the Blue Devils trip to Virginia five of the last six times they have played here, and that is hard to not notice either. We all know that home and road discrepancies in college basketball are still a big thing in this sport, and that is why I see Duke coming out strong but who knows who will win this game?

I know I am the expert who should have those answers, but this is going to be a game that comes down to the wire, and I think Duke will come out strong, and that North Carolina game will start to creep into their heads. If you don’t think that Duke is looking ahead to their next game with the Tar Heels, you are out of your mind!! HA!

On paper, I don’t think it is hard to argue that the Dukies are the better team, as they are 10 – 1 over the last 11 games, and they have five players averaging double-digits a night.

Kyle Filipowski is coming off one of his worst efforts of the campaign against Clemson, and you could see just watching it that something was off with his timing. Not only did he miss six of his 11 free throws, but he went 0 – 3 from behind the arc and barely scratched out 9 points. He is the Duke leading scorer playing in his second campaign trying to be a leader of this program, and I expect him to come out of the gate hot tonight. Call it a gut feeling, but this guy averages 17 PPG and he cannot afford to get in foul trouble again as he did against Clemson.

Filipowski eventually fouled out of the game, and he has got to work on reducing his tendency to reach in and get called for fouls. He already has 52 fouls this season, and he is on pace to smash the 78 personal fouls he committed as a Freshman last year. He still went on to earn ACC Rookie of the Year, the ACC Tournament MVP, and the Kyle Macy National Freshman of Year honors, so if he can stay in the game it will help build on those accolades.

Because North Carolina is coming up for Duke, the only thing going through my mind is to come out strong early, and hope to build a lead on the road. Virginia Tech is not going to lay down for Duke at home when it comes to getting this win, and it is a big game for both of these programs tonight.

The Hokies can ill-afford to take another ACC loss and fall to 5 – 5, and Duke wants to keep pace with 9 – 0 North Carolina in conference play. Duke can improve to 7 – 2 with a road win, and they would love to be marching into Chapel Hill this coming weekend with momentum from this win.

My call is 37 – 32 at halftime with a Blue Devils lead, and Duke will hope to escape Blacksburg with a road win heading to Carolina next!

• Selection: Duke -1.5 1st-Half Handicap
• Best Odds: 1.91
• Bookmaker: bet365
• Stakes: 4/10

Go with our tip at bet365

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VIRGINIA TECH HOKIES VS DUKE BLUE DEVILS GAME INFO

• Tuesday, January 30th
• Time: 00:05 UK Time
• Venue: Cassell Coliseum, Blacksburg, VA

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VIRGINIA TECH HOKIES VS DUKE BLUE DEVILS BETTING LINES

Virginia Tech vs Duke Betting Lines
bet365 Odds	Moneyline	Match Total	Match Handicap
Virginia Tech	2.45	Over 147.5	Hokies +3.5
Duke	1.60	Under 147.5	Blue Devils -3.5

Odds are available as of January 29, 2023. Odds may now differ.

Go with our tip at bet365

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VIRGINIA TECH HOKIES VS DUKE BLUE DEVILS TRENDS

• Duke has hit the 1H Moneyline in 27 of their last 34 games.
• Duke has hit the Game Total Under in 10 of their last 14 away games.
• Duke has hit the 1H Game Total Under in 9 of their last 14 away games.
• Virginia Tech has hit the Moneyline in 15 of their last 19 games at home.

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VIRGINIA TECH HOKIES VS DUKE BLUE DEVILS STATS AND FORM

The Blue Devils come into Blacksburg hot having won 10 of their last 11 games.

The Blue Devils are only committing 9.7 turnovers a game, which ranks them 9th in the Nation. Additionally, they rank 10th in the country with their assists-to-turnover ratio.

The Hokies are an impressive 5 – 1 at home against Duke in the last 6 meetings in Blacksburg.

The Hokies rank 2nd in the Nation with an 80.3 free-throw percentage.

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VIRGINIA TECH HOKIES VS DUKE BLUE DEVILS WHERE TO WATCH

This game can be seen on ESPN Flagship Channel at 7:05 EST (US).

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SAFER GAMBLING

At bettingexpert, we always take a safe approach to gambling. We’ll never bet more than we can afford or chase losses. For more advice, head to our Safer Gambling hub.