The Virginia Cavaliers have yet to reach the Final Four in the 10 years that Tony Bennett has arrived in Charlottesville. They are still two wins away from getting there, and will have a dangerous and peaking opponent in the form of the Oregon Ducks this coming Thursday in the Sweet 16 round. Going into the game NCAAB futures price Oregon at the bottom of the pack with +5000 odds to win the tournament, while Virginia is listed at +500, with ten times greater odds of achieving the ultimate feat.
Betting on the Oregon Ducks (25-12 Overall / 10-8 Conference)
Oregon is not done – yet. The Ducks sustained the momentum they are riding ever since an inspired run in the Pac-12 tournament, as they punched their tickets into the Sweet 16 with a 73-54 win over fellow Cinderella contender UC Irvine Anteaters on Sunday. Payton Pritchard led the Ducks against UC Irvine, as the senior guard scored 18 points on 7-for-15 shooting from the field. Pritchard got plenty of help, especially from Kenny Wooten and Louis King, who had 11 and 16 points respectively. The Ducks 3-point shooting was excellent, too, making 13-for-25 of their shots from downtown. Oregon’s outside shooting will be a big key to the Ducks’ attempt in breaking down Virginia’s stonewall defense. In the first round, the Ducks shot 7-for-15 from distance against the Wisconsin Badgers – another high major team with an elite defense. Bench production is also an x-factor for the Ducks. Ehab Amin, who laid an egg in the Wisconsin game, had 12 points and provided energy off the bench for the Ducks in the win over UC Irvine.
The Ducks are 10-0 against the spread (ATS) in their last 1o games.
Betting on the Virginia Cavaliers (31-3 Overall / 16-2 Conference)
The Oklahoma Sooners were the latest team to experience the debilitating defense of the Cavaliers. In a second-round matchup, Virginia pummeled the Sooners on its way to a convincing 63-51 win. Opting to start Mamadi Diakite in the middle over Jack Salt seemed to have done wonders for Virginia, as the junior forward put up 14 points to go with nine rebounds, three blocks, and a steal in 28 minutes. With his effectiveness in the Sooners game, Diakite could be starting again this coming Thursday against Oregon. Diakite is an excellent rim protector who complements the team’s tight perimeter defense. Diakite averaged 1.5 blocks per game in the regular season and is one of the key reasons why Virginia had the best defense in the nation prior to Championship Week when the Cavs allowed just 55.0 points per contest. That kind of defense has clearly carried over into March Madness, as Virginia has yet to surrender more than 56 points in each of its last two games. Virginia’s offense, meanwhile, has seemingly lost its lethal outside shooting, having 14 of 47 from deep thus far in the tournament. The Hoos shot over 40 percent from rainbow country back in the regular season.
Virginia is 5-5 ATS in its last 10 games, and is 24-10 overall on the season, covering 70.6% of the time which makes them second best (in covering) in NCAA Division 1 basketball this year.
