NC State 13-5 (5-2) at Virginia 13-5 (4-3) 7pm ACCN
NC State travels to Charlottesville Wednesday night to take on Virginia. The Wolfpack are coming off the home loss to Virginia Tech 84-78, while the Cavaliers are trying to win their 3rd in a row after the victory at Georgia Tech.
The big question is who’s style of play will win out? Virginia is notorious for their defense and their slower pace. However, NC State controlled the tempo when these two teams played back on January 6th. The Wolfpack won their first meeting 76-60. NC State’s bench outscored Virginia 21-8 and they made 5 more 3’s.
However, I am going to take Virginia at home to win. They are 10-0 at home and winning their 1st game on the road Saturday at Georgia Tech will help build some momentum for them. Round 2 will be a fun one in Charlottesville.
Line: Virginia -6.5
Miami 12-6 (3-4) at Notre Dame 7-11 (2-5) 7pm ESPN2
In our second ACC matchup of the night, we have two teams who are both 1-4 in their last 5 games out. Miami most recently lost a heartbreaker on a buzzer-beating 3 at Syracuse. Notre Dame lost a close one at Boston College back on January 15th.
Question one in this game is can Notre Dame keep Miami out of transition and easy baskets? The Canes are scoring 82.4 points per game Notre Dame will not want to get into a track meet with them. The other question is does Notre Dame have enough firepower on offense to keep up with Miami? They will need a big night from guys like Markus Burton who averages 16.3 points per game to lead the team.
In the end, I think Miami has too much offense and they have a bad taste in their mouth from the loss at Syracuse. The ACC also needs Miami to start putting some wins together soon so they can solidify another potential team in the NCAA Tournament.
Line: Miami -5.5