Player of the Week Sallis Plays a Starring Role As Wake Forest Tops Duke
A Huge Game Against Duke Is the Latest Big Effort When It Comes to the Hunter Sallis Stats
Hunter Sallis
Hunter Amon Sallis
Wake Forest Demon Deacons23
March 26, 2003 (age 20)
1.96 m
American
Shooting guard
Former Gonzaga Guard Lights It Up Against ACC Power Duke Again
Lost in all the attention that Duke star Kyle Filipowski suffering an injury when the Wake Forest fans stormed the court after the win over the nationally ranked Blue Devils was that Wake Forest’s Hunter Sallis had one of his best games of the season as Hunter Sallis’ stats saw him make 11 of 13 shots from the field in the four-point win.
Wake Forest was listed by the NCAAB odds as the 2.5-point favorite and used a strong second half to erase a two-point halftime deficit.
Wake Forest headed into the season priced at +25000 in the odds to win the national title according to the college basketball predictions. The odds to win March Madness have Wake Forest at +12000. Wake Forest’s odds to win the ACC title have moved from +4000 to +25000 since the season began.
Keep on reading for more on college basketball player of the week Hunter Sallis.
Welcome to the ACC
Sallis spent his first two seasons playing at West Coast Conference powerhouse Gonzaga.
He faced the Blue Devils before arriving at Wake Forest but failed to score in four minutes of action in a three-point loss on Nov. 26, 2021 in his seventh collegiate game.
Sallis didn’t start in any of his 69 games over the two seasons he was at Gonzaga. He scored in double figures just six times in those 69 games.
It has been a different story since landing at Wake Forest.
Piling Up the Points
Sallis had 19 points in his first game at Wake Forest and has been in double figures in every game.
When looking at the Hunter Sallis stats, the 29 points he scored against Duke was his 13th game this season with at least 20 points.
Wake Forest is 8-2 in the last 10 games when Sallis has at least 20 points with his best scoring effort coming when he had 33 points in an 83-79 win over North Carolina State on Feb. 10.
Sallis is averaging 18.7 points per game and among ACC players, only North Carolina’s RJ Davis and Blake Hinson of Pittsburgh are putting up more points per contest.
Sallis is fourth in the ACC in field-goal percentage and is tied for ninth in 3-pointers made per game.
Torching the Blue Devils
After scoring 22 points on 10-of-20 shooting in the first game against Duke, the Blue Devils were aware of what Sallis can do with the ball in his hands.
He had 15 points in the second half in the rematch and he iced the game with a pair of free throws with one second left to play after a turnover by Duke kept the Blue Devils from either tying the game or going ahead with a late 3-pointer.
In the first game of the week for Wake Forest, Sallis had 17 points, four rebounds, and five assists in a 91-58 win over Pittsburgh.
Exceeding the Expectations
The 247sports.com transfer portal database had Sallis listed as the 130th-best transfer heading into the 2023-24 season.
Six players who landed at 16-12 St. John’s program were rated ahead of Sallis.
There were 16 ACC players who were rated as higher-impact transfers than the junior from Omaha.
Ten of those ACC transfers ranked ahead of Sallis are averaging more than 10 points per game but none of them are putting up more points per game than Sallis’ number of 18.7 when looking at the Hunter Sallis stats.
About the Demon Deacons
Wake Forest is in fourth place in the ACC standings with games remaining against Notre Dame, Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, and Clemson so a top-four seed in the upcoming ACC tournament is quite possible.
The Demon Deacons are 15-0 at home this season after the win over Duke but are just 2-7 on the road. The win over the Blue Devils was the first win over a ranked opponent this season.
Wake Forest is tied for fourth in the ACC with a record of 15-11-1 against the spread. The Demon Deacons lead the ACC with an 11-3-1 record against the spread at home. Wake Forest is 3-6 ATS on the road.
Wake Forest is 13-5-1 ATS as a favorite with the production of Sallis playing a major role in the success for the Demon Deacons.
Wake Forest is 25th in the NCAA NET rankings so the Demon Deacons are looking pretty good to earn a spot in the March Madness field.
The Demon Deacons are one of four ACC teams that have at least 16 games land over the total. The 10 games going over the total at home by Wake Forest leads the ACC.
For NCAAB standings, odds analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.
