Duke forward Mark Mitchell out vs. Georgia Tech due to knee sprain

Duke will be without a key piece of the rotation on Saturday evening against Georgia Tech. Shortly before the 5 p.m. tipoff, the Blue Devils announced forward Mark Mitchell is out with a sprained knee.

Mitchell has been flourishing of late for Duke. He scored 20-plus points in back-to-back performances before a relatively quiet performance earlier in the week, when he scored just four points.

With Mitchell sidelined, Duke becomes thin in the front court, as center Kyle Filipowski is the only other front court player on the roster to average more than 15 minutes on the floor per night.

Mitchell is third on the Blue Devils in per-game scoring, averaging 12.2 points per game. He’s fourth on the team in minutes player per game, playing 26.9 a night. He’s also second on the team in rebounding, averaging 5.6 boards a game.

The Blue Devils’ rivals are fast rising

North Carolina has taken its game to another level in recent weeks. The Tar Heels have won five consecutive games — all by double digits — and look like true contenders to reach the Final 4.

The ESPN College GameDay crew spoke Saturday morning about the ceiling for this North Carolina team and how it has gotten higher and higher in recent weeks.

“I think Final 4 is the ceiling for North Carolina. Now do I think Purdue, Arizona, UConn are better teams than North Carolina? I do. I don’t think they’re there yet,” Jay Bilas said. “But they do defend at a high level. It’s four games in a row they’ve held their opponent to 60 or less. They’re getting out and guarding people.”

North Carolina pounded Clemson and NC State in back-to-back games last week and is taking care of Syracuse on Saturday.

The Tar Heels aren’t only playing well on defense but also on offense. Rece Davis said on GameDay that UNC is ranked in the top 15 in both offensive efficiency and defensive efficiency.

“Their transition has gotten better. RJ Davis is having a spectacular year, one of the five best guards in the country. So I like North Carolina’s chances,” Bilas said. “They don’t score as easily as they have in some past years, and they’re not as good of an offensive rebounding team as they have been in past years. But I think North Carolina is legit and they’re getting better. I think it’s North Carolina and Duke in the ACC, without question.”