Duke Opens ACC Schedule as 5.5-Point Favorites at Virginia Tech – Picks & Odds

By Jordan Horrobin in College Basketball
Updated: April 9, 2020 at 8:28 am EDTPublished:

- No. 10 Duke just handled No. 11 Michigan State with relative ease
- Virginia Tech also beat Michigan State, but has lost its past two
- These teams split a pair of close games last season
Is it seriously conference play already in NCAA men’s basketball? Well, yes and no.
Virginia Tech hosts Duke on Friday in the schools’ first ACC action of the year, but it’s a strange one-off with a handful of non-conference games left to play. It may not look like a flashy matchup, with the No. 10 Blue Devils squaring off with the unranked Hokies, but there is plenty of intrigue and a fairly tight spread to pay attention to.
The Blue Devils are currently +900 in 2020 NCAA Tournament odds and enter Friday’s game as 5.5-point favorites in the Duke vs Va Tech odds.
Duke vs Virginia Tech Odds
Team | Moneyline | Spread | Total |
---|---|---|---|
Duke | N/A | -5.5 (-105) | Ov 141.5 (-105) |
Virginia Tech | N/A | +5.5 (-115) | Un 141.5 (-115) |
Odds taken Dec. 5
A Common Opponent Already?
As ACC foes, it’s normal for Duke and Virginia Tech to have a plethora of common opponents to compare them to. But ACC play hasn’t started yet. Still, they already have a common opponent in Michigan State.
A week and a half ago, the Hokies stunned the Spartans in the Maui Invitational as 13-point underdogs.
Is it March?!!
We take down No. 3 Michigan State in @MauiInv 💪#StoneByStone | #Hokies 🦃 pic.twitter.com/Udf96UeDV1
— Virginia Tech Men's Basketball (@HokiesMBB) November 26, 2019
Then on Tuesday, Duke had its turn taking down the Spartans, maintaining a double-digit lead throughout the second half.
It’s just business. #DukeWins
⚫️⚫️⚫️⚫️⚫️⚫️😈 pic.twitter.com/9Agzbh4su9
— Duke Men’s Basketball (@DukeMBB) December 4, 2019
It’s an impressive non-conference win for both teams, but Duke pulled it off with more style points.
Major Injury for Duke
On Friday, freshman shooting guard Cassius Stanley suffered a non-contact leg injury against Winthrop while driving to the basket for a layup. It was initially feared that he’d suffered a knee injury, but coach Mike Krzyzewski later identified it as a hamstring injury that will allow Stanley to return “hopefully right after Christmas.”
Coach K gives an injury update on Cassius Stanley. Says its hamstring/muscle related, not a knee injury. but still anticipates him being out til after Christmas pic.twitter.com/SZk5sWpY1W
— C.L. Brown (@clbrownhoops) November 30, 2019
Stanley, a four-star recruit and the No. 3 shooting guard in the 2019 freshman class, has had a major impact so far, averaging 12.9 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game. Oh, and his athleticism is off the charts.
Cassius Stanley. BUNNIES 🐰 pic.twitter.com/CbGWFh8cbJ
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) November 27, 2019
The loss for the Blue Devils is a big one. Then again, he didn’t play against Michigan State and the team fared just fine.
Last Year’s Matchups
Duke and Virginia Tech met twice last year, with the Hokies taking the regular season matchup (77-72) and Duke taking the NCAA Tournament matchup (75-73). The Hokies have covered single-digit spreads in four of their past five games against Duke.
Zion Williamson
RJ Barrett
Tre Jones@DukeMBB's freshmen trio went OFF in the win over Virginia Tech! #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/pomi5J0AJ4— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 30, 2019
But both teams use a handful of freshmen, who will be facing each other for the first time on Friday. So it’s difficult to know how much weight to put into past results.
Against the Spread
Duke is only 4-4 against the spread, which sounds bad without context. But in each ATS loss, the Blue Devils were double-digit favorites (including three games in which they were more than 20-point favorites). Sometimes that’s just hard to cover.
Virginia Tech is 5-3 ATS, including 2-1 as the underdog. But the Hokies have lost back-to-back games (both straight up and ATS), which isn’t a great sign.
Decision Time
I might tread more lightly if Stanley had just gotten hurt, but seeing how Duke responded in his absence against a highly-regarded Michigan State team gives me more confidence that the Blue Devils are for real.
Pick: Duke -5.5

Sports Writer
Jordan Horrobin is a sports journalist whose MLB, NHL, NFL and NCAA work has appeared in outlets such as The Athletic, MLB.com, the Detroit Free Press and more. He is currently based in Toronto, also working as a contributor for Forbes.com and a freelance editor for Sportsnet.