Wednesday NCAA: No. 5 Duke (12-1) vs. Iowa State (10-3)

Non-conference records can be very misleading as the BCS conference schools schedule a bunch of lightweights to tune up for conference play. While there’s no doubt Duke is a national title contender and has played some good competition, Iowa State’s 10-3 record could be a mirage. We should find out tonight against the Blue Devils at the United Center in Chicago.

The Blue Devils are 13-point favorites on WagerWeb.com.

Actually, the best player on the floor might be Iowa State forward Craig Brackins, a likely first-round pick next summer. He is averaging 17.4 points and 8.3 rebounds, but he made a name for himself with scouts last year when he had 42 points and 14 rebounds in a loss to Kansas.

But here is why ISU might be in over its head: The Cyclones’ best win came over Iowa, which is one of the bottom teams in the Big Ten. The only other two games against BCS conference opponents resulted in losses, by two to Northwestern and by 21 to California.

Duke is coming off a 21 point conference win over what was a ranked Clemson team on Sunday. The Dukies held Clemson to 12 points on 16.7 percent shooting in the first half of that one. The Blue Devils forced more turnovers (17) than Clemson had field goals (16) on Sunday. It was their third win over a ranked opponent this season.

The Blue Devils are 20-4 against teams in the Big 12, including a 19-3 mark under Mike Krzyzewski. The Blue Devils have won four straight against the Big 12. Krzyzewski has led his team to a 10-1 record in the Chicago area (Coach K’s hometown), including a 6-0 mark at the United Center.

Jon Scheyer, who also is a Chicago native, is averaging 22.3 points, 4.2 rebounds and 7.8 assists per game during Duke’s current six-game win streak. He leads the NCAA in assist-to-turnover ratio at 4.88:1.

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