The Duke Blue Devils take on the Pitt Panthers. Check out our college basketball odds series for our Duke Pitt prediction and pick. Find how to watch Duke Pitt.

The Duke Blue Devils aren't having a bad season, but they're not having an especially good one, either. There is a lot of room for growth on this team. Duke is playing nowhere near well enough to win the ACC and get a top-tier seed in the NCAA Tournament. There is time for the Devils to grow and evolve, but they certainly don't want to labor through the month of January, pick up several losses, and enter February with very little margin for error in terms of winning the ACC and being in position to make a big run in March. Coach Jon Scheyer needs to bring his team along sooner rather than later if the Blue Devils are going to reach their goals. Remember: Duke was a No. 5 seed in last season's NCAA Tournament. That's well below the expected standard at Duke. The expected standard is a No. 2 or No. 1 seed. At the very least, Duke needs to get to the 3 line on Selection Sunday if it wants a decent chance of making a run at the Final Four. A loss here to Pitt would definitely push the Blue Devils below that seed line and into a very uncertain, uncomfortable position.

Here are the Duke-Pitt College Basketball odds, courtesy of FanDuel.

College Basketball Odds: Duke-Pitt Odds

Duke Blue Devils: -5.5 (-102)

Pitt Panthers: +5.5 (-120)

Over: 146.5 (-115)

Under: 146.5 (-105)

How To Watch Duke vs Pitt

Time: 9:00 pm ET / 6:00 pm PT

TV: ESPN

Stream: fuboTV (click for a free trial)*

Why Duke Could Cover the Spread

The best reason to pick Duke is that Pitt has not been particularly strong this season, especially within the ACC. Pitt has absorbed recent losses to North Carolina — by 13 — and also to Syracuse. Given that Syracuse doesn't appear to be an NCAA Tournament team this season, Pitt's current ACC results do not suggest that the Panthers are going to be successful in 2024. Pitt made the NCAA Tournament last season and won a game, a highly productive year under coach Jeff Capel, but we are seeing signs of regression from the Panthers right now, and that regression might be even sharper than a lot of people anticipated.

Sometimes the best reason to pick a team is to trust that team, but many times, the best reason to pick a team is due to a complete distrust of the opponent. That's the case here. This is less a pro-Duke pick than an anti-Pittsburgh pick.

All that having been said, Duke has been drifting along and not playing close to its best. At some point, this talented team is going to get better. Merely modest improvement — not even a dramatic and total turnaround — should enable Duke to cover a manageable spread.

North Carolina won at Pitt by 13. Duke should be able to win at Pitt by at least six.

Why Pitt Could Cover the Spread

The struggles of Duke on the road offer the best reason to take Pittsburgh in this game. Duke labored through a rough and ugly game at Notre Dame this past Saturday, winning by only eight and failing to cover the spread. Duke has lost on the road in ACC play this season, falling at Georgia Tech, one of the worst teams in the conference. Duke might win outright, but the Blue Devils — based on their road form in the ACC this season — are not six or more points better than Pitt.

Final Duke-Pitt Prediction & Pick

Neither team is playing well right now. Neither team is reliable or easy to get a read on. Stay away from this game.

Final Duke-Pitt Prediction & Pick: Duke -5.5