North Carolina vs. Virginia Betting Odds
Carrie Stroup here with your North Carolina vs. Virginia betting odds.
NORTH CAROLINA TAR HEELS (23-10) vs. VIRGINIA CAVALIERS (29-2)
ACC Tournament - Semifinals
Sportsbook.ag Line: Virginia -4.5, Total set at 124
A spot in the ACC championship is on the line when No. 19 North Carolina faces No. 3 Virginia Friday.
No. 19 North Carolina is coming off of a 70-60 victory over Louisville on Thursday and the team has now won-and-covered in four of its past five games. This offense is really cooking lately, scoring 78.0 PPG over the past four contests. It will need to find a way to keep it up against a Virginia team that plays some of the best defense in college basketball.
No. 3 Virginia beat Florida State 58-44 on Thursday and the team now has the bad taste out of its mouth after losing to Louisville in its regular season finale. These two teams last met on Feb. 2, when the Cavaliers beat the Tar Heels 75-64 as 1-point favorites in North Carolina. Over the past three seasons, Virginia is 3-1 both SU and ATS versus North Carolina.
The Cavaliers are 28-47 ATS in March games since 1997, but the team is also 25-12 ATS when playing only their second game in a week over the past two seasons. Virginia is 24-13 ATS against conference opponents over the past two seasons as well. G Theo Pinson (Foot) is questionable for the Tar Heels, who are already without F Desmond Hubert (Knee) and F Sasha Seymore (Knee) for the season. G Justin Anderson (Finger) should be able to play bigger minutes in this game after returning for the Cavaliers against Florida State.
North Carolina is one of the better offensive teams in basketball, averaging 78.0 PPG (18th in NCAA) on 47.2% shooting (31st in NCAA). This team can really pass the ball well (17.7 APG, 2nd in NCAA) and is also strong on the glass (41.7 RPG, 2nd in NCAA). Defensively, however, this team does have its letdowns. The Tar Heels are giving up 67.8 PPG (218th in NCAA) and they will need to patch things up on the defensive end in order to make an extended postseason run.
G Marcus Paige (13.6 PPG, 4.6 APG, 2.9 RPG, 1.7 SPG) is the most important player for this Tar Heels team. Paige entered the season as one of the preseason favorites to win the John R. Wooden Award, but he has not played up to expectations. Paige has, however, come on very strong for North Carolina recently. Over the past three games, he is averaging 17.7 PPG, 6.3 APG and 3.0 SPG and he has looked extremely confident on the floor. Paige had 15 points, four assists and two steals the last time he faced Virginia and he will need to come up big on both ends of the floor in this game.
F Kennedy Meeks (11.9 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 1.4 BPG) was ill and did not play against Boston College in the first tournament game for North Carolina, but he came back to score nine points and grab five boards in 19 minutes against Louisville on Thursday. Meeks should be able to play a lot more against Virginia and the team needs him to be at his best. Meeks is one of the best scorers from the post in college basketball and is extremely efficient (56% FG). He had 11 points, seven boards and two assists before fouling out in 29 minutes against Virginia last meeting. Meeks will need to stay disciplined, as he can’t afford to get into foul trouble this time around.
F Brice Johnson (13.0 PPG, 7.9 RPG, 1.2 BPG) has come up huge for the Tar Heels recently, averaging 18.7 PPG over the past three games. He had 22 points and seven boards against Louisville on Thursday and will need to use his length and athleticism against Virginia in this game. Johnson had 14 points, eight rebounds and three blocks the last time he faced the Cavaliers and his ability to attack the rim and disrupt his opponents on the defensive end make him a truly difficult player to plan against.
F J.P. Tokoto (8.5 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 4.1 APG, 1.5 SPG) can fill up the stat sheet for North Carolina. Tokoto can put the ball on the floor to finish at the rim and he is also an excellent passer and rebounder. He did, however, have just two points against Louisville and six points against Boston College on Wednesday. He’ll need to find a way to contribute more offensively on Friday.
No. 3 Virginia is an unbelievable team defensively, allowing just 50.1 PPG (1st in NCAA) this season. The team rebounds the ball well (36.5 RPG, 67th in NCAA) and also shoots a good percentage from the floor (46.4% FG, 53rd in NCAA). The Cavaliers are averaging just 65.3 PPG (230th in NCAA), but that number is lower due to the slow pace that they prefer to play at. This Virginia team has not allowed an opponent to score 60+ points in its past seven games and it will look to lock up a very talented Tar Heels offense.
G Justin Anderson (12.8 PPG, 4.2 RPG) was Virginia’s most important player before injuring his finger a month ago. Anderson returned to play 12 minutes against Florida State on Thursday and did not score a single point. He should be feeling a bit better for this game and will definitely see an increase in minutes. He had 16 points, seven assists and three rebounds the last time he faced North Carolina and he will need to be effective on the offensive end in order for his team to advance in this tournament and the NCAA tournament.
G Malcolm Brogdon (13.5 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 2.5 APG) has played well for the Cavaliers all season and stepped it up when Anderson went down. Over the past four games, Brogdon is averaging 14.0 PPG. He did, however, struggle with just 10 points (2-for-10 FG) in a poor shooting game against Florida State Thursday. He’ll need to turn things around against a Tar Heels defense that can really struggle at times.
F Anthony Gill (11.5 PPG, 6.7 RPG) has stepped it up offensively recently, averaging 12.8 PPG over the past four contests. Gill is the best rebounder that Virginia has and he is also a very efficient scorer in the post (59% FG). He’ll need to body up Kennedy Meeks in this game, as he is one of the only players on this roster with the size to matchup with him. G London Perrantes (6.2 PPG, 4.8 APG, 2.5 RPG) had four points, nine assists, four boards and two steals against Florida State last game. Perrantes is an excellent passer and will need to find his teammates in the right spots in this one. He’s also a solid outside shooter (33% 3PT) and can really help this team if he buries his open looks.
Fs Mike Tobey (7.4 PPG, 5.3 RPG) and Evan Nolte (3.2 PPG) combined for 22 points against the Seminoles. If these two can contribute offensively in this game then the Cavaliers should be able to advance to the championship game.
- Carrie Stroup, Gambling911.com Senior Reporter
