The Pittsburgh Panthers look to make an early statement in the ACC when they face off against the Virginia Cavaliers at 8 p.m. ET on Friday at John Paul Jones Arena. Virginia is 5-3 overall and 3-2 at home, while Pitt is 2-5 overall and 0-1 on the road. Both teams lost their most recent games by one point when Iowa edged Virginia on Monday and Minnesota beat Pitt in 2021 ACC/Big Ten Challenge matchups.
Virginia had won four consecutive games before running into a surging Hawkeyes team, but Pitt is looking for just its third win of the season. The Cavaliers are favored by 13.5 points in the latest Virginia vs. Pittsburgh odds from Caesars Sportsbook, and the over-under is set at 112.5. Before entering any Pittsburgh vs. Virginia picks, you’ll want to see the college basketball predictions from the model at SportsLine.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every Division I college basketball game 10,000 times. Over the past five-plus years, the proprietary computer model has generated an impressive profit of almost $2,100 for $100 players on its top-rated college basketball picks against the spread. Anyone who has followed it has seen huge returns.
Now, the model has set its sights on UVA vs. Pittsburgh. You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several college basketball odds for Pitt vs. UVA:
- Virginia vs. Pittsburgh spread: Virginia -13.5
- Virginia vs. Pittsburgh over-under: 112.5 points
Featured Game | Virginia Cavaliers vs. Pittsburgh Panthers
What you need to know about Virginia
The Cavaliers were just a bucket shy of a victory against Iowa in a 75-74 loss. Forward Jayden Gardner put forth a good effort for the losing side as he had 18 points along with eight boards. Gardner’s production is down from last season, but still leads the team in points (14) and rebounds (8.3) per game. Indiana transfer guard Armaan Franklin has established himself as a top contributor for the Cavs as well, and has averaged 11.8 points per game in eight starts.
Offensively, the Cavaliers haven’t tested opponents from distance, and have only shot an average of 16.5 3-point attempts per game. Head coach Tony Bennett may consider drawing some more plays up for Kihei Clark on Friday, who has made 42 percent of his 3-point attempts this season. Pitt hasn’t been very aggressive defending the perimeter, and has allowed its opposition to shoot 26 3-pointers per game and make 36 percent of them.
What you need to know about Pittsburgh
The Panthers could taste a win on Tuesday, but let it slip away in a 54-53 loss to the Golden Gophers. Guard Jamarius Burton played for 30 minutes but had a disappointing night with just six points on 2-for-11 shooting. Forward John Hugley had the best night on offense for Pitt, and scored 25 points with 14 rebounds in the loss. Hugley has already played as many games as he did all of last season (7), and has come away with double-digit point totals in four of them.
Something the Panthers have struggled with is protecting the ball while forcing opponents into turnovers. Pitt averages 15.3 turnovers on offense, but their opponents have only given the ball away 9.6 per game. Femi Odukale and William Jeffress have been the Panthers’ best defenders and each averages a steal per contest.
How to make Virginia vs. Pittsburgh picks
The model is leaning over on the total, and it’s also generated a point-spread pick that is hitting in almost 60 percent of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.
Who wins Virginia vs. Pittsburgh? And which side of the spread is a must-back? Visit SportsLine right now to see which side of the spread you need to jump on, all from the computer model that has crushed its college basketball picks to find out.
