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Two of college basketball’s most prestigious programs meet Sunday night in the Elite Eight, as No. 1 seed Kansas and No. 2 Duke clash in a battle of bluebloods. The Jayhawks and Blue Devils have combined for 30 Final Four appearances and eight national titles, though they haven’t met in the NCAA tournament since 2003, and they haven’t met this deep in the tourney since the 1991 national championship.
The game is scheduled to start at about 5:05 p.m. ET and will be broadcast nationally on CBS. If you don’t have cable or can’t get to a TV, you can watch the game live on your computer, phone or streaming device by signing up for one of the following cable-free, live-TV streaming services:
Amazon Prime: If you have Amazon Prime or want to start a free 30-day trial of Amazon Prime, you can watch a live stream of your local CBS channel via the CBS All-Access Amazon Channel, which comes with a 7-day free trial. Once you’re signed up for both Amazon Prime and the CBS channel, you can watch CBS live on your computer via the Amazon website, or on your phone, tablet or other streaming device via the the Amazon Video app.
Hulu With Live TV: If you want an extensive Netflix-like on-demand streaming library in addition to live TV, Hulu now also offers a bundle of live channels, including CBS (live in select markets). You can sign up for “Hulu with Live TV” right here, and you can then watch a live stream of CBS on your computer via the Hulu website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the Hulu app.
FuboTV: CBS (live in select markets) is included in the “Fubo Premier” channel package. It comes with a free 7-day trial, and you can watch on your computer via the FuboTV website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the FuboTV app
Note: You can also watch any tournament game on your computer via the March Madness Live website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the March Madness Live app. To watch these streams, you’ll have a free preview before needing to sign in to a TV provider to keep watching, but if you don’t have cable, you can do this by logging in with your Hulu credentials.
Preview
The history of the programs involved obviously makes this a compelling game, but it’s also a fascinating contrast in styles. While Kansas is more perimeter-oriented, starting four players–Devonte’ Graham, Malik Newman, Svi Mykhailiuk and Lagerald Vick–who can knock down threes, Duke is dominant on the interior thanks to a pair of potential Top-10 picks in Marvin Bagley and Wendell Carter who control the glass and most areas in the vicinity of the glass.
The Jayhawks’ shooting has been on display this tournament. They hit 7-of-17 in the way over Penn, knocked down 9-of-21 against Seton Hall despite Graham going cold and miss all four of his attempts, and they poured in 10-of-22 from deep in Friday’s 80-76 win over Clemson.
Conversely, Duke’s 2-3 zone often makes it really difficult for teams to find clean looks from the outside. Going back to February 11, which is right around when the Blue Devils turned the corner defensively, they have allowed opponents to make just 5.92 threes per game at an atrocious 26.5 percent clip. During that span, in which Duke has gone 10-2, no team has made more than eight in a game.
On the other side of the ball, Duke has one of the most efficient offenses in the country in large part because of their ability to create second and third chances. Bagley and Carter are two of the best rebounders in the country, and as a result, the Blue Devils rebound a whopping 39.2 percent of their own misses, which is the best mark in the country. For Kansas, a bad defensive rebounding team, to counteract that, 7-foot, 280-pound interior presence Udoka Azubuike is going to have stay out of foul trouble (he had 11 rebounds in 25 minutes against Clemson but fouled out), while Silvio De Sousa, who has been big late in the season, will also play a big role.
So, lots of intriguing matchups. Can Duke’s zone slow down Kansas like it has everyone else the last month-and-a-half? Can Azubuike and Mykhailiuk limit the Blue Devils on the glass? And if not, does Self go with some bigger than normal lineups to help counterract Bagley and Carter?
The lower-seeded Duke is favored by three points, but this feels more like a toss-up. Either way, it should make for one of the best games of the tournament.
