Duke basketball fueled further No. 1 overall seed chatter by rolling past Clemson. The Blue Devils avoided a near pre-March Madness scare, though.
Florida State frightened Duke Thursday with FSU missing the final three-pointer in that 80-79 Devils win. Head coach Jon Scheyer called out the Atlantic Coast Conference scheduling format afterward.
Scheyer, however, might not be too content with the final bracket scenarios.
Duke faces some notable nightmare equations ahead of Selection Sunday which can potentially alter its national title game pursuit. Time to dive in before the field of 68 gets unveiled.
Duke could face loaded field
Duke looks like a sure bet No. 1 even if it falls to Virginia in the ACC title game.
But next comes which regional the Devils land. The early projections present Duke landing in one of the more stacked fields.
CBS Sports bracketology has them heading to the east regional as the top seed. Long Island University is the opening round foe here.
But the round two opponents are no slouches. Utah State is loaded and used to NCAA Tournament runs. The Aggies out of the Mountain West Conference bring their mix of size and shooters. Saint Louis (projected No. 9 seed in the east) presents a top 10 three-point offense and one of the nation's top defenses.
The second round presents a possible trap game for the nation's top-ranked team. Duke still faces a fierce gauntlet even if it scales past the first two rounds.
St. John's and past national title winning head coach Rick Pitino are one who may await them in the Sweet 16. But then there's Kansas, featuring potential top NBA Draft pick Darryn Peterson, as a possible round three obstacle.
The selection committee may not do Duke any favors. So what should be the hope out of Durham?
Teams Duke is better off avoiding
Let's start with the possibility of facing an ACC foe in the same field.
The Devils don't want to see Virginia again, especially as the second-highest seeded team in the conference tourney. But Duke likely wants nothing to do with Miami too. The Hurricanes happen to be led by former Duke assistant Jai Lucas, meaning he'll know how to exploit them.
There are mid-majors who pose a possible threat to the Devils too. McNeese State lures one of the nation's best defenses into the madness. The Cowboys bottle the three-pointer and force up to 17 turnovers a game. Plus the Southland Conference champs are used to the March stage already with their third straight appearance.
Houston is one last team Duke ought to avoid after falling short of the national title one year ago. And feature possible No. 1 pick Kingston Flemings on the court.
The Devils field one of the more stacked rosters ahead of the tournament unveiling. Yet the road to the Final Four won't be easy especially if they cross one of these teams.
