Durham, NC (Betting Express) - The fifth-ranked Duke Blue Devils will play host to the Virginia Tech Hokies in the ACC opener for both squads this evening.

Virginia Tech has won its last four games to improve to 9-4 overall, and the club is coming off a 75-66 decision over Charleston Southern. Amazingly, all four losses thus far have come by four or fewer points, including a pair of one-point setbacks.

As for Duke, it is 40-15 all-time in ACC openers. The Blue Devils are 11-1 overall this season, and they have posted three straight victories since suffering their only loss of the campaign to Michigan in Ann Arbor. On Wednesday, Duke rolled to a 92-51 victory over Loyola-Maryland in a truly lopsided affair.

Duke owns a 33-7 series lead over Virginia Tech, including wins in eight of the last 10 meetings with the Hokies.

There are three talented scorers on the Virginia Tech roster, and no other player is netting more than 6.3 ppg. Therefore, the importance of A.D. Vassallo, Malcolm Delaney and Jeff Allen can not be overstated. Vassallo leads the team in scoring with 19.0 ppg, and he is shooting 40 percent from three- point range. Delaney checks in with 16.7 ppg, and he is tops with 57 assists. As for Allen, he provides 13.9 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 23 blocks and 25 steals. The Hokies, who are generating 71.4 ppg, allow 64.3 ppg to their opponents. Both Vassallo and Delaney scored 16 points in the victory over Charleston Southern last time out. J.T. Thompson pitched in 15 points, and Allen finished with 11 points. The Hokies earned an 18-5 advantage in points from the foul line in the tilt and only turned the ball over six times.

Duke is averaging 84.0 ppg this season on 48.8 percent shooting from the floor, and the club is limiting its opponents to 61.5 ppg on 39.3 percent field goal efficiency. The Blue Devils are outrebounding foes by 10.5 rpg and have four double-digit scorers in the lineup. Kyle Singler paces the squad with 16.3 ppg, and he is tops with 7.8 rpg as well. Jon Scheyer provides 14.0 ppg, and Gerald Henderson checks in with 12.1 ppg. As for Nolan Smith, he rounds out the group with 10.9 ppg. Duke dominated every aspect of its game against Loyola-Maryland on Wednesday and would have won by an even greater margin if not for a disappointing 57.6 percent effort from the foul line and a 1-of-12 showing from three-point range. The Blue Devils connected on 54.5 percent of their field goal attempts while limiting the opposition to 31.7 percent shooting. A 48-31 rebounding advantage also helped the cause, as did 24 forced turnovers. Singler scored 20 points in that tilt, and Henderson was close behind with 19.