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As ACC play enters the midway point in the schedule, the legitimate contenders have started to take shape in an otherwise crowded field of mediocrity in conference play. Florida State has been one of the ACC’s best groups so far this season, while Virginia hasn’t quite lived up to the early season hype. After playing a back-and-forth nail-biter in Tallahassee just two weeks ago, Florida State is again looking to emerge victorious while the Cavaliers are looking to enact some revenge from a close conference defeat.
Seminoles Looking to Remain Among ACC Elite
Florida State has been one of the country’s most consistent teams this season, and they’ve arguably been the ACC’s top-performing squad to this point in the year. With a balanced offensive attack led by a trio of talented guards, the Seminoles rely upon an attack that averages 76.0 points per game, good for second-best in the conference. Florida State’s leader on the offensive end of the floor has been sophomore Devin Vassell, whose 13.1 points per game lead the team. One area where the Seminoles have struggled particularly has been on the boards, where their 34.0 rebounds per game rank third lowest in the ACC.
Despite entering play as winners of nine consecutive games, the Seminoles have won their last four games by 10 points or less. Even more concerning is that the last two close calls have come against two of the conference’s worst performing teams in Miami and Notre Dame. While wins and losses are the ultimate barometer for a team’s success over the course of a season, Florida State has looked quite vulnerable of late. After squeaking out a 54-50 win when the two teams met a few weeks back, the Seminoles will need a much more complete performance to earn the tough road win.
Cavaliers in Need of Resume-Building Win
The season hasn’t gone as planned for the defending national champion Cavaliers who sit at 13-6 and just 5-4 in conference play. Virginia is entering play off a road win against the ACC’s bottom-dwellers in Wake Forest, the second consecutive win for the Cavaliers in conference play. The reason for optimism for Tony Bennett’s bunch rests on senior Mamadi Diakite’s shoulders, as the 6’9 forward leads the team with 13.2 points per game and double-digit performance in 15 of 19 contests. Finding offense outside of Diakite’s dominance in the paint has been challenging for Virginia, as no other Cavaliers are averaging more than 10.0 points per game to this point in the season.
Offense remains the main weak point for Virginia, as the Cavaliers sit at 348th out of 350 teams with an average of just 56.0 points per game. Virginia has yet to cross the 70-point threshold in any game this year, and have reached the 60-point plateau a mere seven times in 19 games. Simply put, the Cavaliers are not good offensive team. Heck, they aren’t even mediocre on that end of the floor. Virginia relies heavily on the country’s top-ranked defensive scoring unit, allowing just 50.4 points per game. While that recipe has worked against inferior opponents, Virginia has struggled against the ACC’s contenders this season.
Despite their well-documented woes on offense, this seems like a perfect revenge spot for the Cavaliers who came close to pulling off a stunner just a few weeks back in Tallahassee. With Florida State trending a bit downward with three straight single-digit victories, the opportunity for a slip-up seems as high as it’s been at any point this season. While the safest bet might be the under, give me Virginia to pull off the upset on Tuesday night as they look to right the ship on a difficult season. Take the Cavaliers of Virginia -1 at https://www.payperhead247.com/ our favorite pay per head bookie location.
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