Imagn Images

The No. 1 seed South Carolina Gamecocks (33-3) will try to stay on track for back-to-back titles when the Gamecocks face the No. 2 seed Duke Blue Devils (29-7) in the Women's NCAA Tournament Elite Eight on Sunday. South Carolina got past No. 4 seed Maryland in a 71-67 final on Friday behind a strong final three minutes. Duke is coming off consecutive low-scoring victories over No. 10 seed Oregon and No. 3 seed North Carolina. The Gamecocks notched an 81-70 win over the Blue Devils in December.

Tipoff is 1 p.m. ET at Legacy Arena in Birmingham. The latest South Carolina vs. Duke odds list the Gamecocks as 9.5-point favorites, while the over/under is 128.5. Before making any Duke vs. South Carolina picks, be sure to see the 2025 Women's NCAA Tournament picks from SportsLine experts Aaron Barzilai and Calvin Wetzel. 

Barzilai is a Ph.D. from Stanford who served as Director of Basketball Analytics for the Philadelphia 76ers. Wetzel incorporates his mathematical background and strong knowledge of women's hoops to turn the site's prediction model into picks. They went 543-383 overall (+122.89 units) during the 2023-24 women's college basketball campaign and posted a 125-71-1 record (+44.33 units) so far in 24-25. 

Now, here are their best bets for South Carolina vs. Duke on Sunday:

Duke +9.5

South Carolina has not been at its best in the NCAA Tournament, needing strong second halves to get past its last two opponents. The Gamecocks only beat No. 9 seed Indiana by 11 points before using a late burst to beat Maryland by four points. "The slow starts have been a theme for South Carolina for several years now, and while they often turn on the jets enough to come back to cover, lately they've been settling for scoreboard wins as opposed to against-the-spread wins. Now they face a Duke squad that will do everything they can to shorten the game and turn it into a grinder," Wetzel told SportsLine.

Under 128.5 points

Duke has finished with 61 points or less in four of its last six games, including a 47-38 win over No. 3 seed North Carolina on Friday. The Blue Devils did not crack double digits in two quarters of that game, while also limiting the Tar Heels to a combined 13 points in the second and fourth quarters. They will be keen on playing at a slow pace again on Sunday. "The Gamecocks may be content to play that way, which should be good for the under as well as for Duke to keep it within seven," Wetzel said.

Want more Women's NCAA Tournament picks?

You've seen Wetzel and Barzilai's best bets for South Carolina vs. Duke in the Elite Eight of the Women's NCAA Tournament. Now, get picks for every game from the experts who are up 44 units on their women's college basketball picks this season.