The Syracuse Orange entered this week unranked despite having taken down the Duke Blue Devils last week. A win against the No. 10 Virginia Tech Hokies, however, could put them back into the Top 25. The Hokies, meanwhile, are looking for consistency and a rebound from a bad loss in Chapel Hill. The Orange and the Hokies share the same +4,000 odds to win it all.
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Betting Preview for the Syracuse Orange vs. Virginia Tech Hokies College Basketball Game on January 26, 2019
Where: Cassell Coliseum, Blacksburg, Virginia
When: Saturday, January 26, 2019, 4:00 PM ET
Line: Syracuse Orange (odds) vs. Virginia Tech Hokies (odds) – view all NCAA Basketball lines
TV Broadcast: ESPN
Betting on the Syracuse Orange (13-5 Overall / 4-1 Conference)
The Orange must still be beating their chest after the success they recently had in Durham. After beating the Duke Blue Devils at Cameroon Indoor Stadium (95-91 OT) on Jan. 14, the Orange went on to take down the Pittsburgh Panthers at home last Saturday, 74-63. They still have a date with the Miami Hurricanes at home this Thursday before facing the Hokies, and regardless of the outcome of that game, the Orange are going to show up with the same tenacity they showed in their win over Duke because Virginia Tech is not one to carry a rolled-up magazine in a street fight. The Orange depend on junior guard and NBA prospect Tyus Battle, who’s been hot of late. He dropped 32 points on Duke and followed that up with a 22-point performance against Pittsburgh. Battle should get help from senior center and 7-foot-2 behemoth Paschal Chukwu, who’s been nothing short of a monster on the glass. He had 18 rebounds against Duke and 11 more opposite Pittsburgh. He should make a killing beneath the glass against Virginia Tech, which is one of the worst rebounding team in the nation (301st) .
Syracuse is 3-0 against the spread (ATS) in its last three road games.
Betting on the Virginia Tech Hokies (15-3 Overall / 4-2 Conference)
The Hokies have taken two losses against elite teams in their last three games, falling prey to the No. 4 Virginia Cavaliers in Charlottesville on the road on Jan. 15, 81-59, and getting victimized by No. 11 North Carolina Tar Heels in Chapel Hill, 103-82, last Monday. Sandwiched in those two games was an 87-71 win at home against the lowly Wake Forest Demon Deacons. But even in their lopsided loss to North Carolina, the Hokies showed they are to be feared by any team. The Hokies, who are among the deadliest outside-shooting team in college basketball, sank 13 3-pointers on 28 attempts for an insane 46.4 percent success rate. The Hokies are 10th in the nation with 10.4 made 3-pointers per contests on a ridiculous 42.1 percent shooting from deep. Syracuse likes to play zone, and nothing better to use to break it than an accurate sniping from the 3-point region. On top of those, the Hokies are seventh in KenPom in adjusted offensive efficiency with 119.6 points per 100 possessions and third in effective field goal percentage (59.0).
The over is 3-0 in the Hokies’ last three home games.
Writer’s Prediction
Syracuse wins, 78-74
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