Duke March Madness schedule: When do the Blue Devils play next [Updated March 12]

Coming off an ACC title win, where will Duke end up in the March Madness bracket? We take a look at when the Blue Devils will play next. 

In the post-Coach K era, Duke’s March Madness run in 2023 feels markedly different.

Once a perennial top seed, the Blue Devils earned a No. 5 seed this year after Saturday’s rout of Virginia to win the ACC Tournament. Considering that months ago, some believed Duke might miss the NCAA Tournament altogether, this is a good, safe spot for the program. For the first time in a long time, Duke will enter March Madness as an underdog.

That doesn’t mean other heavyweights want to see them in the ring. The Blue Devils’ impressive showing at the ACC tournament revealed a talented squad finding its stride at the perfect time, playing like a top-20 team and a legitimate championship contender in the past month with improved defense, solid shooting, and unbridled confidence.

Entering the NCAA tournament with a nine-game winning streak, Duke’s first-year head coach Jon Scheyer, who became the third head coach ever to win the ACC tournament in his first season, has assembled a blue-blooded Avengers squad with grit to match its talent.

Final Four-caliber guard Jeremy Roach has been playing at the top of his game. Behind him, a No. 1 recruiting class composed of Dereck Lively, Dariq Whitehead, Kyle Filipowski, Tyrese Proctor, and others.

As with any team that goes through a changing of the guard, the Blue Devils had their struggles. They overcame them, and now they’re ready to give the top seeds a run for their money.

Let’s take a look at when Duke will play next.

2023 March Madness schedule: When will Duke play next?

After the First Four games on March 14-15, the first round of March Madness begins on March 16-17 with games beginning at 12:15 p.m.

Duke will play No. 12 seed Oral Roberts on Thursday, Mar. 16. You can find the complete bracket here.

With much less pressure mounting on them compared to, say, if they were a No. 1 seed, Duke can make a strong push to the Sweet Sixteen and beyond this year. Assuming they overpower the No. 12 in the first round, the Blue Devils could face a beatable No. 4 seed Tennessee in the second round. From there they might face No. 1 Purdue.

Even if they run into a top seed, they seemingly have the talent and cohesion to defeat anybody.

Usually, “Duke” and “sleeper” don’t belong in the same sentence. While all eyes are on Kansas to see if the Jayhawks can become the first repeat champion since Coach K helped Duke win in 1991 and 1992, the Blue Devils will be quietly sneaking under everybody’s noses.