The Duquesne Dukes hadn't been to the NCAA Tournament since 1977, so that was enough of a cause for celebration. But BetOnline customers witnessed the first real upset of the Big Dance when the Dukes turned back BYU, which is now a member of the Big 12.

Duquesne now carries a nine-game winning streak into the game, and part of that was a win in the Atlantic-10 championship game against VCU. On Saturday they will try to make it to the Sweet Sixteen for the first time since 1969 as they square up against the Illinois Fighting Illini in a game that gets underway at 8:40 PM ET at the CHI Health Center in Omaha, NE.

Coach Keith Dambrot has been around a long time. He spent 13 seasons as the head man at Akron and is now in his seventh season with Duquesne. He has some talent around him, obviously, and one of his main people is Dae Dae Grant, who had 19 points against BYU. Grant has made 94% of his free throws, which is insane. It's too bad the rest of his team (71.5%) isn't as consistent from the charity stripe.

There is an emphasis on defense, which places the Dukes within the top 30 in the nation in the efficiency rankings.

It is clear that Duquesne would like to get into a game in which they can limit the number of possessions. They have a rather slow tempo on both offense and defense, and it is important to note that only two of their last 24 games have exceeded the total that is posted in this game. That may be a testament to the ability of guards Grant and Jimmy Clark to impose their pace.

In the NCAA basketball betting odds that have been posted at BetOnline on this game, the Illini are considerable favortites:

Illinois Fighting Illini -10
Duquesne Dukes +10

Over 147 points -115
Under 147 points -105

Okay, we've said what we had to say about Duquesne. But it is worthwhile to mention that the Illini are on a bit of a roll too, with five straight victories, including a Big Ten title win over Wisconsin. And no one should lose sight of the fact that Illinois is second in the nation in offensive efficiency. We don't know if they are going to try to run up and down the floor to upset Duquesne's rhythm, but they can make their shots, especially from inside the arc (54.8%).

As far as triples are concerned, they are more than adequate, as Quincy Guerrier and Coleman Hawkins make 38% between them. But the guy who really triggers this offense is Terrence Shannon, one of the best players in the country. His strength is that he can find any number of ways to score, and he knows how to get to the line. There's a metric called "Fouls Drawn per 40 Minutes," and Shannon is 15th in the country in that statistic. What's even better is that he converts, hitting 81% of his attempts. And the Dukes are not one of those teams which can defend without fouling.

Talent-wise, there are big advantages for Illinois. But we know what Duquesne is going to try to do - freeze it as much as possible and hit shots from the outside. As a team, however, they don't shoot well enough. We prefer to move in the way of the total. And that's intriguing. Illinois is 25-10 to the "over," while Duquesne is 26-9-1 to the "under.'

Okay, what the hell - the clock strikes 12 on the Dukes. But we also like the UNDER, because we expect a controlled pace.

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