Virginia vs. #11 Tennessee Odds & 2024 NCAAB Expert Analysis for teams competing in the Baha Mar Hoops event

The marquee matchup around college basketball features unranked Virginia of the ACC taking No. 11 Tennessee in a neutral-site matchup in the Bahamas.

Both schools will be NCAA Tournament teams this season, and UT is a solid favorite on the NCAAB odds in the Week 3.

Virginia Cavaliers NCAAB Line +536

Virginia coach Tony Bennett shocked the sport by retiring practically on the eve of the season and the Cavs are 3-0 under new coach Ron Sanchez, who was only given the interim title for this year but certainly could earn the full-time job.

Isaac McKneely

UVA comes off a 70-60 win over Villanova last Friday as Isaac McKneely scored 23 points and made all six of his 3-point attempts. McKneely made his first six shots of the game, including four 3-pointers. McKneely also made Virginia’s 11th 3-pointer with 16:24 left in the second half to take a double-digit lead for good at 44-33. McKneely’s fifth 3-pointer rattled in with 6:26 left for a 58-45 advantage and his sixth turned into a four-point play for an 18-point lead.

It was Virginia’s first game of the season away from John Paul Jones Arena for the Cavaliers, and after a slow start they dominated their Big East opponents. UVA shot 51 percent from the field and made 14-of-25 attempts (56 percent) from deep.

Andrew Rohde

Junior guard Rohde chipped in 13 points (5-for-8 FG, three 3-pointers) after missing one game injured, while freshman forward Jacob Cofie rounded out the double-digit scorers with 12 points and six rebounds. The Cavaliers held the Wildcats to 35-percent shooting (19-of-54) and improved to 169-11 when scoring 70 or more points since 2009-10.

Ron Sanchez

“I think they played inspired basketball,” Sanchez said. “I think they’re playing for one another, and it’s great to see young men in this space just enjoying that, just being a college basketball player in that atmosphere. This is the first look at Virginia basketball for the season on the national stage since the NCAA tournament, and they performed well. I’m just happy for them. They deserve that.”

McKneely leads UVA in scoring at 16 points per game, while shooting a blistering 64.7 percent from 3-point range. Cofie leads UVA in rebounding (7.7 rpg), steals (2.0 spg) and blocks (1.7 bpg), and ranks second in scoring (13 ppg). He is the first UVA freshman to reach double figures in scoring in each of the first three games since Sylven Landesberg in 2008-09.

The Rankings

UVA ranks eighth nationally in 3-point shooting at 44.6 percent. The Cavaliers seek their ninth November tournament championship in the last 11 years (Emerald Coast Classic, Charleston Classic, Barclays Center Classic, Corpus Christi Challenge, NIT Season Tip-Off, Battle 4 Atlantis, Legends Classic and Continental Tire Main Event). UVA is 178-54 (.767) in non-conference play since 2009-10.

Tennessee Volunteers NCAAB Line -833

No. 11 Tennessee (4-0) routed Austin Peay 103-68 on Sunday. The Vols held a 64-22 advantage for points in the paint and outrebounded the Governors 43-25. UT’s 21-2 run early in the first half set the tone for the rest of the game. Austin Peay cut Tennessee’s lead to as few as 14 points after Tekao Carpenter’s second-straight three-pointer with nine minutes remaining, but went 3-for-11 from the field in the final eight minutes.

Igor Miličić Jr.

The Vols shot a remarkable 63.8 percent, tied for its fifth-best mark of the last 20 seasons in the decisive victory and got a game-high 23 points from senior forward Miličić Jr., who paced the team in scoring for the second straight outing. Miličić amassed his season-best point total on an 11-of-14 shooting to tie his career high in makes, co-led all players with nine rebounds and dished out four assists, one shy of his career best, plus blocked two shots. He finished plus-42 during his 30 minutes of action.

Zakai Zeigler

Zeigler was plus-43 in his 31 minutes and native totaled 19 points, a game-best eight assists, three rebounds, a block and a steal, becoming the first Volunteer with that line in over 13 years. Zeigler, who shot 7-of-8 overall with a 3-of-4 clip from deep, also became the fifth player in program history to reach 500 career assists.

Joran Gainey

Gainey contributed 15 points, 11 of which came in the second half, while finishing 4-of-7 from the field and 6-of-8 at the line. Cade Phillips scored 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting and grabbed a co-game-best nine rebounds, setting a career high in each category. Felix Okpara posted 12 points on a 6-of-10 ledger, seven rebounds and a game-high three blocks, and Jahmai Mashack scored 10 points, aided by an 8-of-10 free-throw mark that gave him career bests in both areas.

For Tennessee, it marked the first time in nearly two years that six players scored in double figures, dating to Dec. 4, 2022, as well as the first time since Feb. 1, 2022, it had five players with at least 12 points. The Volunteers had a dominant 64-22 margin in paint points, a 34-13 ledger in bench scoring and a 27-6 cushion in fast-break points.

Rick Barnes

Coach Barnes’ team posted 10 blocks, the first time it has reached double figures since the 2021 SEC Tournament, as well as 10 steals. Meanwhile, the 103 points tied for the second-most during his illustrious 10-year tenure in Knoxville. The Volunteers have now reached triple digits seven times during Barnes’ tenure, including five times at home, with 103 matching their second-highest total during his 10 seasons. Through four contests this season, Tennessee has trailed for a total of just 94 seconds and led for a total of 155:32. The Vols lead the nation with a 58.1 percent field-goal clip. They have shot over 53.0 percent in each of the last seven halves, including surpassing 57.0 percent in each of the past four, with a mark over 63.0 twice.

As for this game, Tennessee owns a 7-2 all-time record in the Bahamas, with each game coming in the Battle 4 Atlantis. It went 2-1 in 2013 (fifth place), 2-1 in 2017 (third) and 3-0 in 2022 (champion). The Volunteers, who beat third-ranked Kansas to claim that 2022 title, have won four in a row in the Bahamas. In Barnes’ tenure, UT is 10-10 in its eight multi-team event (MTE) appearances. That includes a 7-5 record outside the continental United States.

How to Bet Virginia vs Tennessee Odds NCAA Basketball

When: Thursday, 9:30 PM ET
Where: Baha Mar Convention Center, Nassau, Bahamas
TV: CBS Sports Network
Stream: Paramount+

Virginia vs. Tennessee Series History

The Cavaliers own an 8-5 advantage over the Volunteers in the all-time series that dates back to 1917. After starting 1-4 against Virginia, Tennessee is 4-4 in its last eight games. UT defeated Virginia 87-52 in the last meeting between the teams at Thompson-Boling Arena on Dec. 30, 2013, in Knoxville. This is the fifth neutral site at which the two sides have met, joining Atlanta (loss in 1981), Indianapolis (loss in 1982), East Rutherford (loss in 2000) and Columbus (win in 2007). The 1981, 1982 and 2007 games were all in the NCAA Tournament, as Virginia is one of three schools Tennessee has faced thrice in the event.

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