The Duke Blue Devils take on the Wake Forest Demon Deacons in Winston-Salem, NC. Tip-off is set for 4:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.
Duke is favored by 11.5 points on the spread with a moneyline of -800. The total is set at 136 points.
Here are my Duke vs. Wake Forest predictions and college basketball picks for January 25, 2025.
Duke vs Wake Forest Odds, Spread
| Duke Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Point Spread | Total Points | Moneyline |
-11.5 -110 | 136 -110 / -110 | -800 |
| Wake Forest Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Point Spread | Total Points | Moneyline |
+11.5 -110 | 136 -110 / -110 | +550 |
- Duke vs Wake Forest spread: Duke -11.5
- Duke vs Wake Forest over/under: 136 points
- Duke vs Wake Forest moneyline: Duke -800, Wake Forest +550
- Duke vs Wake Forest best bet: Duke -10.5 or Better
My Duke vs Wake Forest best bet is on the Blue Devils spread, with the best odds currently available at BetRivers. For all of your college basketball bets, be sure to find the best lines by using our live NCAAB odds page.
Duke vs Wake Forest Betting Preview
The Cooper Flagg hype train has officially hit top speed.
Duke is riding a 12-game winning streak, the nation's longest. The Blue Devils have lost just twice, in neutral site games against Kansas and Kentucky. KenPom gives Duke a 34.9% chance to run the table in the downtrodden ACC.
Flagg specifically has hit his stride, averaging 23.4 points, 6.9 rebounds and 4.6 assists over the last month. His 42-point performance against Notre Dame, on just 14 field goal attempts, may be the best individual game in the sport this season.
His presence opens up so much space and opportunities for his teammates. Big man Khaman Maluach is shooting the best 2-point percentage in the nation (over 83%), and Duke's four guards have combined to hit better than 41% from beyond the arc. Jon Scheyer's roster has an arsenal of weapons that can beat you from all over the floor.
It's scary that despite all of that offensive success, Duke's defense has been better by efficiency standards. It's marginal, since both the Blue Devils' offense and defense are ranked in the top five nationally, yet the ability to put the clamps on teams has been noticeable as Duke hits ACC play.
Four of Duke's last five opponents have failed to top .95 points per possession, with an outlier shooting night from Notre Dame the only game not qualifying.
That game is instructive for how good Duke has been. The Irish walked into Cameron Indoor, shot 14-of-24 from outside the arc and only committed seven turnovers. They also never led the game and trailed by as many as 18 points, largely due to Flagg's excellence that night.
The avenues to beat these Blue Devils exist but are narrow.
Though their in-state rival is among the best teams in the nation, Wake Forest is no slouch.
The Demon Deacons sit just one loss behind Duke in the ACC standings and have won six straight. Hunter Sallis remains one of the best scorers in the conference, flanked by a team filled with helpful contributors. Steve Forbes has a defense ranked in the top 30 in the nation, allowing just 65 points per game.
The real issues comes offensively, where Sallis produces, but does so inefficiently. He's taken over 100 3s this season, but has made just 29.7% of those looks.
He's far from alone in shooting poorly. The Demon Deacons rank 350th in 3-point percentage at just 28.1%. Wake hasn't made double-digit triples in a game since November. The Deacs have more games shooting under 20% from deep (three times) than games shooting better than 40% (just once this season).
There could be hope for positive regression, yet I'm skeptical the actual shooting ability is on the roster. Sallis made 40% last season, but just 26% in two seasons at Gonzaga. Plenty of other players are shooting worse than their career averages, but none in a way that would indicate a hot streak is inevitable.
Beyond the 3-point line, this team can't create scoring opportunities reliably. Wake Forest ranks 165th in offensive efficiency, worse than 8-10 UTSA and 8-14 North Dakota.
That's not a sustainable way to earn an NCAA Tournament bid.
Duke vs. Wake Forest Betting Analysis
My initial inclination when researching this game was to consider the Demon Deacons a live 'dog at home. The ACC is a mess, so teams on the bubble like Wake will have limited chances at statement wins. Welcoming the Blue Devils onto your home court certainly qualifies.
Digging deeper, the chance of an upset slowly looked more and more improbable.
In his short time running the Duke program, Scheyer has established his teams as fully capable of taking care of business on the road. In Duke's last 10 road games as a favorite, the Blue Devils are unbeaten, with a 9-0-1 ATS record.
Duke hasn't just won those games and covered, the Blue Devils have demolished the point spread by an average of 9.15 points.
The analytically community backs up this trend for this specific trend. EvanMiya has Duke as a 10-point favorite. Bart Torvik sets the line at 12 points, and KenPom is at 13 points.
It's college basketball. The numbers and experts can certainly be wrong, with a poor-shooting Wake team capable of a one-night hot streak.
I'll take those chances and bet on Duke to run away with this one.
Pick: Duke -10.5 or Better
