Don’t sleep on the Miami Hurricanes. They have enough talent to upset some of the best teams in the nation. They already upset a ranked team, Duke, and played some tightly contested games against some of the nation’s top dogs in Notre Dame, Virginia and Louisville.
With all that said, Virginia Tech may end Miami’s run in the ACC Championship. Powered by a young and hungry squad, the Hokies are a team that will not go away without a fight. Will the Hurricanes get caught looking past Virginia Tech? Read on as we break down this second round matchup in the highly-competitive ACC.
For more ACC Championship action, check out our complete previews for Florida State vs. Clemson and Pittsburgh vs. NC State.
[sc:MarchMadness ]Virginia Tech Hokies vs. Miami Hurricanes Preview
Where: Greensboro Coliseum Complex, Greensboro, NC
When: Wednesday, March 11, 9:00 PM ET
Line: Virginia Tech Hokies at Miami Hurricanes – view all NCAA Basketball lines
Betting on the Virginia Tech Hokies
It took Jalen Hudson’s go-ahead jumper with 11.7 seconds left and a couple of missed shots from Wake Forest for the Virginia Tech Hokies to escape with a 81-80 ACC Tournament first round win on Tuesday night.
Hudson finished with a season-high 32 points on 10-of-18 shooting. It was the most a Virginia Tech player has scored in the ACC tournament. His breakout game should ensure increased playing time against a tough Miami side in the second round of the tournament.
[sc:NCAAB240banner ]Hudson has only scored a total of 10 points on 33 percent shooting across two games against Miami this season. He may be able to use his outside shot in this game, after going 2-for-5 in the season series. The Hurricanes have allowed opponents to shoot 36 percent from downtown in their last three games.
The freshman guard should expect some support from leading scorer Adam Smith, who has averaged nine points over the two games against Miami. Justin Bibbs is also another viable scoring option after putting up 10 points per game against Miami this season.
The total has gone over in four of Virginia Tech’s last five games.
Banking on the Hokies for the upset? Create a betting account now and get your picks in for a wild championship week in NCAA Basketball.
Betting on the Miami Hurricanes
The Miami Hurricanes ended the regular season with a bang, winning five of their last seven games (4-3 against the spread). They should be pretty confident opening their ACC Championship bid against the Hokies as they already own two 20-point blowout victories over Virginia Tech in the regular season.
The Hurricanes have a cast of players who’ve shown big games against the Hokies this season in James Palmer, Sheldon McClellan, Manu Lecomte and Tonye Jekiri.
Palmer shot a perfect 5-of-5 from three-point range in the most recent meeting, an 82-61 rout on March 7. Lecomte led the team with 20 points in that game on 6-of-8 shooting (5-of-6 from downtown). McLellan scored a game-high 21 in a 76-52 win on February 18, while Jekiri finished with a double-double (15 points and 15 rebounds).
Virginia Tech has showcased paltry three-point defense recently, so expect the duo of Palmer and Lecomte to get open shots in this game. The Hokies have allowed opponents to shoot 48 percent from three-point range in their last three games (including 60 percent in their opening round game).
The Hurricanes have won seven of their last 10 games against Virginia Tech, going 6-4 against the spread over that stretch.
Writer’s Prediction
Miami takes another blowout win.
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