3 ranked college basketball teams on upset alert this week

No. 8 Duke (At Wake Forest 2/24)

Some of the most dangerous road games in college basketball are trips to play opponents who need a big win to boost their resume in the NCAA Tournament. Those games often end up being traps since the home team desperately needs the game more and plays with an energy level the ranked foe can't match.

Duke could find itself walking into a trap on Saturday as they hit the road to take on Wake Forest. Jon Scheyer's team is playing well, ripping off 15 wins in their past 17 games to climb back into the Top 10, but Saturday's showdown means a lot more to the Demon Deacons.

Last week was a tough one for Wake Forest, which played hard in road games against Duke and Virginia only to lose by a combined 10 points. ESPN's Joe Lunardi currently has the Demon Deacons as his first team out of the field and Saturday's rematch with Duke is really the last chance for Wake Forest to make a statement given what's left on their schedule in a mediocre ACC.

It certainly feels like the Demon Deacons are a tournament-caliber team that just needs a big result to push them over the cut line in a weak year for the bubble. Taking down Duke at home could do it so the Blue Devils will need to be ready for a big challenge Saturday afternoon.