The 12th ranked Virginia Tech Hokies will look to take care of business at home when they host the 15th ranked Louisville Cardinals in an intriguing ACC showdown of Top 20 teams on Monday night. With the Hokies looking to extend their winning ways and Louisville looking to bounce back after having their own winning streak snapped the last time out, let’s find out which one of these teams is offering the best value against the college basketball odds in our online sportsbook.
Louisville vs Virginia Tech NCAAB Lines & Betting Analysis
No better way to start a week than BIG MONDAY‼️ #BeatVT pic.twitter.com/Wqg370wViG
— Louisville Basketball (@LouisvilleMBB) 4 de febrero de 2019
- When:Monday, February 4, 2019 at 7:00 PM ET
- Where: Cassell Coliseum, Blacksburg, Virginia
- TV: ESPN
- Radio: Louisville / Virginia Tech
- Live Stream: WatchESPN
- NCAAB Odds: Virginia Tech -5 / Total: 137.5
Why Bet On Louisville at +5?
Why should you consider betting on Louisville in this contest? Well, the Cardinals have the edge in scoring by putting up 79.1 points per game to Virginia Tech’s 77.3 points per contest. In addition to that, Louisville is also the better free throw shooting and rebounding team and they also have the edge in bench production.
An even better reason to back the Cardinals is that they’ll be quite hungry after having their six-game winning streak snapped in their 79-69 smackdown loss against 10th-ranked North Carolina at home Saturday. The Cardinals fell behind by 16 at halftime and could never get over the hump while suffering their first loss since Jan. 9. Defensively, Louisville is holding their opponents to an average of 67.6 points per game (97th).
“We didn’t come out with much fire,” Louisville coach Chris Mack told reporters. “It was a great environment, and to essentially end the half with no offensive rebounds and let Carolina dismantle us on the glass, I can’t tell you how disappointed in that effort alone.”
Team Statistics
Offense:- Average Score For: 79.09
- Field Goals: 45.64 %
- Three Points: 35.63%
- Free Throws: 76.20%
- Rebounds: 37.95
- Average Score Against: 68.14
- Field Goals: 41.34%
- Three Points: 32.25%
- Free Throws: 68.15%
- Rebounds: 33.73
Why Bet On No. 11 Virginia Tech at -5?
Why should you consider betting on the 12th ranked Hokies in this ACC clash? Well, there are several good reasons to do so. First, Virginia Tech is playing solid basketball, having won three straight including their statement-making 47-24 win over 23rd ranked NC State this past Saturday. Virginia Tech has a phenomenal defense that limits the opposition to just 60.2 points per game to rank sixth nationally in points allowed. Case in point, the Hokies held the Wolf Pack to their lowest scoring output in the shot-clock era while holding their conference rivals to a mind-boggling 16.7% shooting from the field and 7.1% shooting from beyond the arc.
“It still doesn’t seem real,” Hokies leading scorer Nikeil Alexander-Walker told reporters afterward. “. … It was one of those days for them where they couldn’t make (shots) and we just kept getting stops. And we just kept getting more confident and growing more powerful.”
Last but not least, the best reason to back Virginia Tech is the fact that the Hokies are a perfect 11-0 at home this season.
Team Statistics
Offense:- Average Score For: 77.29
- Field Goals: 49.65%
- Three Points: 42.22%
- Free Throws: 75.44%
- Rebounds: 32.71
- Average Score Against: 60.24
- Field Goals: 39.98%
- Three Points: 33.09%
- Free Throws: 68.48%
- Rebounds: 29.52
Louisville vs Virginia Tech NCAAB Betting Trends
- Louisville is 4-1 ATS in the last 5 games
- Louisville is 6-1 SU in the last 7 games
- The total went UNDER in 4 of Louisville’s last 5 games
- Virginia Tech is 8-4 ATS in the last 12 games at home
- Virginia Tech is 13-2 SU in the last 15 games
- The total went OVER in 4 of Virginia Tech’s last 6 games
Expert Analysis and Prediction for Louisville vs Virginia Tech
While Louisville has been surprisingly solid this season and the Cardinals are ranked inside the national Top 20, the fact of the matter is that Virginia Tech’s last game was so utterly dominating that I just can;t see the Hokies losing this one at home to a Louisville teams that is just 4-2 SU in six road games this season.
Yes, I know Louisville has gone 8-1-1 ATS in their last 10 games following an ATS loss and 6-1 ATS in their last 7 road games, but Virginia Tech has gone 5-0 ATS in their last 5 games following a straight up win of more than 20 points, 9-2 ATS in their last 11 Monday games and a seriously bankroll-boosting 36-17-1 ATS in their last 54 games following a ATS win.
Again, after seeing Virginia Tech hold a solid North Carolina State team to just 24 points in their last contest, there’s no way I betting against the Hokies in this one even if the underdog in this conference rivalry is 4-1 ATS in the last five meetings!
NCAAB Betting Pick: Virginia Tech 75 Louisville 68
