Duke Blue Devils vs Louisville Cardinals Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 01/06/2026

Game Time: 7:00 pm ET, Tuesday, January 6, 2026

Venue:  KFC Yum! Center, Louisville, KY

Where to Watch:  ESPN

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Duke +2.5, Louisville -2.5; Over/Under:  160.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  Duke +2.5, Louisville -2.5; Over/Under:  160.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Duke +2.5, Louisville -2.5; Over/Under:  160.5 points

Duke Blue Devils:  13-1 (2-0) (1st place, ACC)

Louisville Cardinals:  11-3 (1-1) (9th place, ACC)

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Duke Blue Devils:  4-1  last 5

Louisville Cardinals:  3-2  last 5

Duke is entering this game with a 13-1 record overall, a 2-0 record in conference games, and they are 3-0 in their road games this season where they will be in this game. They are coming off a win against the Florida State Seminoles in their last game. Isaiah Evans led the team in points in that game with 28 while Cameron Boozer was next on the team with 17. Cameron Boozer led the team in assists with 9 in that game while Patrick Ngongba II and Caleb Foster each led the team in rebounds with 6. They were 52.8% from the field, 44.4% from 3-point range, and 92% from the free throw line with their shooting in that game. Their offense is averaging 87.3 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 65.5 PPG against them. Duke has an ATS record of 7-7 this season and their O/U record is 5-9.

Louisville is entering this game with an 11-3 record overall, a 1-1 conference record, and they are 8-0 in their home games this season where they will be in this game. They are coming off a loss against the Stanford Cardinal in their last game. Ryan Conwell led the team in points in that game with 18 while Isaac McKneely was next on the team with 17. Isaac McKneely and Aly Khalifa each led the team in assists with 3 in that game while Sananda Fru led the team in rebounds with 8. They were 43.8% from the field, 22.2% from 3-point range, and 85.7% from the free throw line with their shooting in that game. Their offense is averaging 90.4 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 69.1 PPG against them. Louisville has an ATS record of 9-5 this season and their O/U record is 7-7.

The current betting odds have Duke listed as a 2.5 point underdog in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. Duke has looked great in their games this season with their 13-1 record overall and their 2-0 conference record which has them right at the top of the ACC. They have been a good road team too with their 3-0 road record this year. Meanwhile, Louisville has looked really good in their games this season with their 11-3 record overall, but their 1-1 conference record has them right in the middle of the ACC at the moment. They have looked great on their home court though with their 8-0 home record this year. Louisville is ranked inside the top 25 at the moment and they looked like one of the best teams in the nation with their strong start to the season, but they have cooled off a bit now. They are only 3-2 in their last 5 games with their losses coming in more recent games, and they are off a loss to Stanford in their last one. They are starting to show some cracks now and they picked the wrong time to fall out of rhythm with a team coming into town that could also be one of the best in the nation. Duke only has 1 loss which was a tight game against a ranked Texas Tech, losing by 1 point at home, but they have bounced back with 2 wins in a row now and will be looking to stay perfect in the conference. As good as Louisville has looked to start the season, they are starting to struggle now as the schedule gets tougher with conference play, and Duke is still the more talented team with some of the best players in the nation. The best way to place a bet here is on Duke to cover the spread in this game. 

Duke Louisville Prediction:  Our NCAAB Pick for Tuesday, January 6, 2026 (7:00 pm ET start time) is Duke 82 Louisville 78.

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Duke Blue Devils: 16-8 ATS in road games. 21-11 ATS after scoring 85 points or more. 21-11 ATS versus very good teams - outscoring their opponents by 8+ points/game. 4-1 UNDER when the line is +3 to -3. 19-10 UNDER versus good rebounding teams - outrebounding opponents by 4+ per game.

Louisville Cardinals: 4-10 ATS after 3 or more consecutive unders. 3-6 ATS off a road loss against a conference rival. 0-5 ATS after playing 2 consecutive road games. 6-0 UNDER at home when the line is +3 to -3. 15-5 UNDER versus good rebounding teams - outrebounding opponents by 4+ per game.

Duke Blue Devils:  I. Ufochukwu (C) Questionable - Undisclosed. S. Wilkins (G-F) Out - Redshirt.

Louisville Cardinals:  M. Brown (G) Out - Back.

"Bottom line, it's not good enough. That's not taking anything away from the offense. We've hung our hat on our defense, even the beginning of this year. And that's taken a big step back." - Jon Scheyer on his team’s defense this season. 

"He will not play on Tuesday. He's chomping at the bit. He wants to be out there so stinking bad. You can tell. It's just been a couple disappointing setbacks as we've tried to ramp him back up." - Pat Kelsey on the injury to Mikel Browns Jr.

C. Boozer 

I. Evans 

C. Foster 

P. Ngongba 

D. Sarr

M. Brown 

R. Conwell 

S. Fru 

J. Hadley 

I. McKneely

PPG: Cameron Boozer (23)

APG: Cameron Boozer (4.2)

Reb/G: Cameron Boozer (9.8)

PPG: Ryan Conwell (19.6)

APG: Mikel Brown Jr. (5.1)

Reb/G: Sananda Fru (6.9)

Coaches:

Duke Blue Devils: Jon Scheyer (4th season)

Louisville Cardinals: Pat Kelsey (2nd season)