Duke, Virginia Set for Top 5 Clash Saturday

THE GAME
No. 2 Duke at No. 3 Virginia
When: Feb. 9 \| 6:00 PM (ET)
Where: John Paul Jones Arena
Watch Live: ESPN
Listen Live: Blue Devil IMG Sports Network
Radio Affiliates
Live Stats

Leading Off

Looking to sweep the season series and extend a six-game winning streak, No. 2 Duke heads to No. 3 Virginia for the teams' second clash in less than a month.
The Blue Devils took the first meeting at Cameron Indoor Stadium, 72-70, on January 19 -- Duke's NCAA-leading fifth win over an AP top 15-ranked team this season.
The last nine games in the Duke-Virginia series have been decided by a total of 42 points (4.7 points per game).
Duke enters Saturday as one of two remaining undefeated road teams, joining top-ranked Tennessee.
Freshman RJ Barrett, who leads the ACC in scoring at 23.0 points, is 10th on Duke's single-season freshman scoring list (505). He is the fastest Duke freshman to score 500 points, and the second fastest player in any season under Coach K to score 500 points (J.J. Redick, 19 games in 2005-06).
Over the last five games, freshman Zion Williamson is 50-of-66 (.758) from the field with 118 points. He is second in the ACC in scoring at 22.0. He and Barrett are the highest scoring duo in the country this season at 45.0 points per game.
Williamson is the nation's only player averaging 20.0+ points and shooting .650+ from the field.
The Blue Devils have allowed just 57.5 points over the last four games -- fifth-best in power conferences over that span.
Of the nation's top 40 teams in scoring defense, Duke is the only team ranked in the top 115 highest tempo teams. The Blue Devils are 35th in scoring defense and 18th in tempo.
Duke has recorded a steal on 13.9 percent of opponents' possessions -- best percentage in the NCAA. In the 2+ games that Tre Jones missed, Duke's steal percentage was 6.0.

Duke vs. Virginia
Duke leads the all-time series, 120-51, and has won four of the last five. The Blue Devils lead the series, 41-34, in Charlottesville (5-3 at John Paul Jones Arena)…Duke and Virginia are meeting for the first time in the regular with each team having 20+ wins…Saturday's game marks the third consecutive meeting, and fourth in the all-time series, that Duke and Virginia are meeting with each team ranked in the AP top five…No. 4 Duke defeated No. 2 Virginia, 69-63, in Charlottesville on January 31, 2015; No. 2 Virginia beat No. 4 Duke, 65-63, in Cameron last season (January 27); No. 1 Duke beat No. 4 Virginia, 72-70, on January 19 at Cameron.

Rugged Stretch
Beginning with Virginia, the Blue Devils are on the road for four of their next six games…Three of the four road games are at AP Top 25 teams Virginia (No. 3), Louisville (No. 16) and Virginia Tech (No. 11)…Duke's home games in this stretch are back-to-back rivalry match-ups versus NC State and No. 8 North Carolina…The Blue Devils have already faced six Top 25 teams (5-1), with five more remaining on the schedule…Duke's 11 potential Top 25 games would tie Louisville, North Carolina and Virginia as the most in the country this season.

High-Ranking Success
Duke has played an NCAA-leading six games versus AP top 15 opponents, including five away from Cameron…Duke's 5-1 record versus top 15 teams leads the nation…Four of the Blue Devils' final nine games this season are teams ranked in the AP top 15…Duke's three wins (3-1) over AP top 10 teams are also an NCAA high this season, while Iowa State, Kansas, Kentucky, North Carolina and Virginia each have two.

Duke: 4-0 In Road ACC Games
Duke has won its first four ACC road games this season, opening 4-0 away from home in conference play for the first time since the 2011-12 season…That season, Duke went undefeated on the road in ACC play on its way to a 13-3 league record…No. 2 Duke and No. 1 Tennessee are the only two undefeated road teams remaining in the NCAA this season.

Balancing Defense & Tempo
Duke is 35th nationally in scoring defense, yielding 65.2 points per game. The fast-paced Blue Devils are 18th-quickest in tempo (avg. 73.2 possessions per 40 minutes)…The other 39 of the top 40 scoring defenses have an average tempo rank of 289th -- Duke is 18th…The other 19 of the top 20 tempo teams have an average scoring defense rank of 299th -- Duke is 35th…Of the 20 fastest teams, Duke is the only team ranked in the top 115 for scoring defense…Of the 40 best scoring defense teams, Duke is the only team ranked in the top 115 for fastest tempo.

Duke's Most Top-5 Vs. Top-5 Games
Saturday's game marks the Blue Devils' fourth AP top-5 vs. top-5 game this season -- the most played by a Duke team before March 1 in history…Duke is 2-1 in those previous games this season, beating Kentucky and Virginia, and falling to Gonzaga…There have been four top-5 vs. top-5 games across the country this season, Duke has played in three of them (Kansas vs. Tennessee is the other).

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