This year’s North Carolina at Duke rivalry might be the most watched college basketball game so far this year. The Duke Blue Devils are the No. 1 team in the nation, and everyone thinks they are the team to beat. They have looked like an unstoppable powerhouse when they are at full strength, and they have lost just once when they have had all their stars available. However, rivalries have a funny way of leveling the playing field. The North Carolina Tar Heels are hoping to knock Duke off its pedestal and keep its hopes of winning a conference title alive this Wednesday night, and they will be counting on guards Cameron Johnson and Cody White to get the job done.
There will be a plethora of props for the biggest rivalry in college basketball at BetDSI.
Who will have more combined points in UNC-Duke?
Cameron Johnson and Cody White +7.5
RJ Barrett and Zion Williamson -7.5
Johnson has had a great senior season. He is the prototype of a player that really benefited from staying in school, as his game has grown leaps and bounds over five years in college basketball. Johnson started off playing under Jamie Dixon at Pittsburgh but came to Chapel Hill as a graduate transfer last season. He had a tough time finding a role on the team and wasn’t a great shooter, but he has been the team’s leader this season. He is hitting nearly 52 percent of his field goals, and he is deadly from distance. Johnson has hit 48 percent of his three-pointers this year to be one of the deadliest shooters in the country.
White will likely be one and done since he continues to shine. He hasn’t been particularly great from the floor, but he has a great all-around game, gets to the line, he is an above average three-point shooter. White is the second-leading scorer on the Tar Heels with 15.7 PPG, and he was huge in a recent win over Miami with 33 points.
Of course, Duke has the best freshman duo in the country. With apologies to Trae Young and a few others, Zion Williamson has been the most exciting college basketball player this decade. He has incredible athleticism for a player of his size, and his ability to get out and throw down thunderous dunks in transition is a momentum changer. Williamson practically scores at will, hitting 68.3 percent of his field goals, and he is averaging 22.4 PPG.
Williamson’s success has somewhat overshadowed the play of Barrett. Barrett was the top recruit in the country this cycle, and he has been Duke’s leading scorer. He hasn’t been as proficient as his teammate (Who has been?), but he is hitting 44.8 percent of his field goals and he is averaging 22.7 PPG.
There are two reasons that I think Duke’s duo will outscore UNC’s duo. First, Williamson should dominate Luke Maye in the paint. Maye has had a lot of trouble with big bodies that like to bang down low, and it’s unlikely that he will be able to slow down a freight train like Williamson.
The second reason is Barrett, but not for the reason you may think. Barrett takes a ton of shots, and his usage rate goes way up against big name opponents. Maybe he feels like he is in Williamson’s shadow a little bit and wants to prove himself, but when the spotlight is on, he wants to grab the attention. He put up 30 shots against Syracuse, 25 shots against Gonzaga, 22 shots against Texas Tech, and 21 shots against Auburn (when they were ranked No. 6). Barrett will want to get his numbers, and that makes he and Williamson the right side.
