Pittsburgh vs Virginia Gambling Lines
The Pittsburgh Panthers will take on the sixth-ranked Virginia Cavaliers on Saturday as they look to continue an improbable run in the ACC tournament. [ad-4468020]
Pittsburgh’s wins in their first two tournament games give them wins in five of their last six games overall, while Virginia followed up a disappointing regular season-ending loss to Maryland with a comfortable victory over Florida State in their ACC tournament opener.
ACC Tournament – Semifinal
Pittsburgh Panthers (25-8) vs. 6 Virginia Cavaliers (26-6)
Date: Saturday, March 15, 2014
Time: 1:00 PM ET
Venue: Greensboro Coliseum
City: Greensboro, North Carolina
Spread: Virginia -3.5
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Matchup Stats | ATS Insider Preview
It’s incredible what Pitt’s season has come down to. The Panthers had begun the season 16-1 before hitting the tough portion of their conference schedule.
Looking back on their season, the team’s only bad losses came against Florida State and N.C. State, though their best wins would have probably been against Stanford at a neutral site and at Notre Dame, leaving the team on the bubble with regards to a ticket to the Big Dance.
All that changed when the team defeated North Carolina in the quarterfinal round of the tournament, if a 29-point win in their opener against Wake Forest wasn’t enough already.
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Pitt forward Talib Zanna was the star of the show in the team’s 80-75 win over North Carolina. The senior matched a team-high with 19 points, and added a whopping 21 rebounds, nearly half of the team total, filling out his stat line with three assists, a steal, and a block.
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Guard James Robinson added a matching 19 points, with six rebounds, four steals, and three assists. The Panthers have now scored 82.3 points per game over the course of their current three-game winning streak, though that offense will be put to the test on Saturday against a Virginia defense that ranks among the nation’s best, surrendering just 55.3 points per game.
Virginia’s defense played a big role in its tournament-opening 64-51 win over Florida State. The team held the Seminoles to 42.6 percent shooting from the floor and 30.0 percent shooting from three in the win. Guard Joe Harris paced the team in scoring with 20 points on 7-of-12 shooting.
The Cavaliers have run roughshod over the rest of the ACC in conference play this season, and will be looking to continue their hot play with the tournament crown as they very much remain in the hunt for a top seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament.
As for Pittsburgh, Friday’s win over North Carolina all but surely punched their ticket to the tournament, so they could be in for a major letdown on Saturday, particularly given that they will be playing their third game in as many days.
Even still, Pittsburgh’s going to want this one more, and given the way these tournament games have a way of going down to the wire, those 3.5-points could come into play.
The Panthers are 5-1 ATS in their last six games against ACC opponents.
The play: Pittsburgh +3.5
