Siena Saints vs Duke Blue Devils Prediction, 3/19/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Siena Saints vs Duke Blue Devils

Date: Thursday, March 19, 2026

Location: Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, SC

TV: CBS

Odds/Point Spread: Siena (+29)

The Duke Blue Devils (32-2) will take on the Siena Saints (23-11) at Bon Secours Wellness Arena on Thursday in the 1st round of the NCAA Tournament. Duke opens as 29-point favorites. The total has been set at 135.5.

The Siena Saints took the court against Merrimack and took home the win by a score of 64-54 in their last game. Siena ended with a 38.2% FG percentage (21 out of 55) and converted 4 of their 16 3-point shots. From the free throw line, the Saints converted 18 of 21 tries for a rate of 85.7%. In regard to rebounding, they earned 45 with 14 of them being on the offensive end. They also distributed 13 dimes in this matchup while forcing 4 turnovers and getting 2 steals. When talking about defending, Siena allowed the other team to go 29.3% from the field on 17 of 58 shooting. Merrimack earned 9 assists and had 8 steals in this game. In addition, Merrimack pulled down 22 rebounds (5 offensive, 17 defensive), but wasn't able to put a block in the stat sheet. Merrimack finished shooting 76.9% at the free throw line by knocking down 10 of their 13 tries. They knocked down 10 of 31 attempts from downtown. Concerning personal fouls, the Saints ended up with 11 and Merrimack totaled 16 personal fouls.

Gavin Doty is a player who was a contributor in this matchup. He accumulated 23 points on 7 of 17 shooting. He saw the court for 38 minutes played and also totaled 8 rebounds. He went 41.2% from the field and also recorded 2 assists.

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Siena heads into this contest with a win-loss record of 23-11 this year. They lose possession by turning the ball over 10.3 times per game and as a team they commit 13.7 fouls every game. As a team, Siena is pulling in 34.4 boards per contest and has earned 456 assists this year, which ranks 164th in the country in terms of passing the rock. The Saints are hitting 30.4% on shots from beyond the arc (183 of 601) and 76.9% from the free throw line. They have an average of 70.5 points per game (294th in D-1) while connecting on 45.7% from the field.

On defense, the Saints are forcing 11.0 turnovers per game while drawing 16.6 personal fouls. They are currently ranked 67th in the country in giving up assists to the opposition with 389 relinquished on the season. The Saints defensively are giving up an opponent FG percentage of 42.2% (805 of 1,909) and they surrender 31.6 boards per game as a unit. They give up 32.8% on shots from beyond the arc while they are 15th in D-1 in points per game allowed (65.7).

When they last stepped on the court, the Duke Blue Devils went home victorious with a score of 74-70 against Virginia. Regarding attacking the glass, Duke allowed Virginia to grab 24 overall (7 on the offensive glass). They went 33.3% from behind the 3-point line by shooting 8 out of 24 and ended up going 14 out of 16 at the free throw line (87.5%). The Blue Devils permitted Virginia to knock down 24 out of 54 tries from the floor which gave them a rate of 44.4% in this matchup. When this game wrapped up, the Blue Devils shot 25 out of 65 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 38.5%. Regarding three-point shots, Duke made 8 out of 25 tries (32.0%). They were able to make 16 of those for a percentage of 80.0%. Virginia had 17 fouls in this contest which got the Blue Devils to the charity stripe for a total of 20 shots. They coughed up the ball 11 times, while getting 4 steals in this matchup. The Blue Devils were able to snag 31 defensive rebounds and 9 offensive boards totaling 40 in the matchup.

Isaiah Evans pitched in for the Blue Devils for the matchup. He knocked down 6 of 14 in this matchup giving him a field goal percentage of 42.9%, and totaled 2 rebounds. He racked up 20 points in his 29 minutes on the hardwood and had 1 assist in this game.

Duke has a mark of 32-2 for the campaign. When it comes to executing on offense, the Blue Devils are connecting on 49.0% from the field, which ranks them 22nd in the nation. Duke has accounted for 2,798 pts for the campaign (82.3 per game) and they snag 40.3 rebounds per game. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 16.9 times per contest (30th in D-1) and they turn it over 10.5 times per game. The Blue Devils have committed 15.7 personal fouls per game while shooting 72.4% from the charity stripe.

The Blue Devils are ranked 3rd in college hoops in points allowed per game with 63.1. They are forcing 12.2 turnovers per game and have allowed teams to shoot 39.2% from the floor (9th in college). The Duke defense gives up 30.4% on 3-point shots (273 of 897) and their opponents are making 71.7% of their free throw shots. They have surrendered 11.6 assists and 29.4 total rebounds per game, which ranks them 48th and 7th in college hoops.

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Siena (+29)

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