Duke Basketball: 4 Reasons the Blue Devils Will Win the ACC

The Duke basketball team, at 10-2 in the ACC, currently sits in a three-way tie for first in conference play with North Carolina and Florida State.

Although each team is a NCAA tournament lock at this point, a conference championship never hurts a resume when the selection committee seeds the field.

Duke has the most to gain by winning the ACC season title as well as the conference tournament. A strong finish could earn them a No. 1 seed in the Big Dance.

Here are four reasons why the fourth-ranked Blue Devils will enter the ACC tournament as the top team.

Consistency

The Blue Devils, unlike UNC and FSU, have had no disappearing acts in any of their games. Despite improving tremendously in ACC play, the Seminoles own two ugly conference losses.

In January, Florida State lost to sub-par Clemson by 20 points. Even worse than that was a loss on February 8 to Boston College and its 212 RPI.

The only major eyesore for the Tar Heels has been their 90-57 drubbing by FSU last month. Maybe that game was an anomaly, but a 33-point beatdown is inexcusable, even if it's against a worthy opponent.

Duke did lose to Ohio State earlier in the season in a game that was not close, but the Blue Devils have displayed greater consistency than both FSU and UNC by not losing to inferior opponents or getting completely run out of the gym.

Turnover Margin

The remaining games between the top three teams in the ACC are going to be dogfights. Because of that, the turnover battle will be crucial, especially at the end of games.

Florida State has the most to fear in this category. They commit 16.7 turnovers a game, which is more than their opponents lose the ball.

UNC, on the other hand, statistically protects the rock better than Duke. The Tar Heels' turnover margin of plus-two per game is almost double that of the Blue Devils'.

However, in close games decided by five or fewer points the advantage swings to Duke. The Tar Heels actually have a minus-1.67 turnover margin while the Blue Devils improve to plus-two in close games. 

In any remaining tight contests Duke will have a distinct edge in the turnover war.

Schedule

Florida State has the most favorable remaining schedule of the three teams. After falling to Clemson and Boston College, it's not beyond the Seminoles to lay an egg against Duke, Miami, Virginia or Clemson (again).

Focusing on Duke and UNC, the Tar Heels have a more challenging schedule ahead. Although Duke still has a dangerous game in Tallahassee, three of North Carolina's last four games are on the road. 

That last one, of course, is at Duke. That is a huge advantage for the Blue Devils.

Even though FSU snapped Duke's home winning streak in January, Cameron Indoor Stadium is still a hostile environment where few visiting teams win, even UNC. 

Three-Point Shooting

It's no secret that Mike Krzyzewski teams like to shoot the ball beyond the arc. 

Florida State also enjoys shooting the long ball, but not as much as Duke. Because the Blue Devils take so many shots outside, three-pointers are crucial for their success.

Despite bad performances against Miami and North Carolina State, Duke is connecting on 36 percent of its threes this month, slightly below its season average of 38.9 percent.

A good sign for Duke is that this year's squad shoots three-pointers better than its 2010 national championship team. 

Three-point shots don't alone win games, but they very may help the Blue Devils lift up another banner in the gym.