NCAA Tournament March Madness

#3 Duke

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Projected seed: 1 (automatic qualifier)

Duke’s résumé reads like that of a top seed because it pairs multiple neutral-site signature victories over Texas and Kansas with a road win at Michigan State and impressive results away at California and Stanford, showing the team can win outside its home court against strong competition. The neutral-site loss to Texas Tech is a clear blemish but it feels more like a hiccup than a trend given follow-up wins over Arkansas and at Louisville. Home wins and a stubborn, close win over Florida supply balance and depth while the road and neutral résumé gives the committee confidence in their ability to perform in a tournament setting. With a chance to further cement that status in a big neutral test with Michigan and league road dates at North Carolina State and Notre Dame plus home dates with North Carolina and Virginia, Duke has meaningful opportunities to either tighten its grip or create more separation. Taken together the quality of the best moments, the limited damage from the worst result, and the remaining slate explain why they project as a top seed.

Date Opponent Ranking Outcome
11/4(N)Texas35W75-60
11/8W Carolina260W95-54
11/11@Army337W114-59
11/14Indiana St201W100-62
11/18(N)Kansas14W78-66
11/21Niagara350W100-42
11/23Howard272W93-56
11/27(N)Arkansas22W80-71
12/2Florida8W67-66
12/6@Michigan St7W66-60
12/16Lipscomb150W97-73
12/20(N)Texas Tech18L82-81
12/31Georgia Tech129W85-79
1/3@Florida St101W91-87
1/6@Louisville19W84-73
1/10SMU37W82-75
1/14@California66W71-56
1/17@Stanford81W80-50
1/24Wake Forest74W90-69
1/26Louisville19W83-52
1/31@Virginia Tech5586%
2/3Boston College14599%
2/7@North Carolina2873%
2/10@Pittsburgh10093%
2/14Clemson2988%
2/16Syracuse7797%
2/21(N)Michigan250%
2/24@Notre Dame7990%
2/28Virginia1681%
3/2@NC State2470%
3/7North Carolina2888%