Demon Deacons and Cavs meet in ACC affair
NCAA Basketball Betting Lines
02/08/2012 - Charlottesville, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Wake Forest Demon Deacons will attempt to snap their four-game losing streak tonight as they head to the John Paul Jones Arena for an Atlantic Coast Conference battle against the 19th- ranked Virginia Cavaliers.
This will be the 119th meeting between Wake Forest and Virginia. The Demon Deacons hold a 69-59 advantage in the rivalry after a 76-71 victory over the Cavaliers in last season's only encounter.
Wake Forest enters tonight's game 11-12 overall and 2-7 in ACC play after its 87-76 loss to the NC State Wolfpack on Saturday. The Demon Deacons had a strong offensive performance against NC State, as they made 50 percent of their field goals and 10-of-17 from three-point range, but they allowed NC State to knock down 52.5 percent of their shots. Head coach Jeff Bzdelik's team will have to focus on the defensive end if it wants to make a run in the ACC, as it ranks last in the league with an allowed average of 70.7 ppg.
The Demon Deacons are led by the ACC's top scoring duo of C.J. Harris and Travis McKie. Harris is ranked second in the conference in scoring with 17.5 ppg and McKie is a very close behind in fifth with an average of 15.8 ppg. McKie is also leading the team in rebounding with an average of 7.2 rpg. Ty Walker, Chase Fischer, and NikitaMescheriakov combined to contribute 33 points in the recent loss to NC State.
Head coach Tony Bennett's team comes in with a 18-4 overall record and a 5-3 mark in league play after its 58-55 loss to the Florida State Seminoles on Saturday. The Cavaliers overcame a double-digit deficit before losing the bout with Florida State. Virginia's four losses have been by a combined 10 points. Virginia is an elite team defensively as it ranks second in the nation in scoring defense with an allowed average of just 51.4 ppg on 39.2 percent shooting. Only four teams have eclipsed the 60-point mark against the Cavaliers this season. Virginia's focus on the defensive end has left it with a sub par scoring average of 63.9 ppg.
Forward Mike Scott continues to lead Virginia with averages of 17.0 points and 8.5 rebounds per game. Scott is leading the ACC in field goal efficiency with a connection rate of 58.8 percent. Joe Harris complements Scott nicely from the guard slot. Harris is the team's second leading scorer with 12.7 ppg after he went 5-of-12 from the field to score 16 points against Florida State. Jontel Evans is the top distributor for the Cavaliers as he his dishing out a team- high 3.7 assists per contest.
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Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence
Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.
Work left to do:
Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.
Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.
DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...
West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.
Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.
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