NC State vs Virginia Odds, Pick: Cavs to Win Again?

Virginia and North Carolina State both really need a win on Wednesday night to improve their respective positioning for both the ACC race and the NCAA Tournament.

This is the second meeting of the year for these teams, as the Wolfpack blitzed the Cavaliers 76-60 in Raleigh earlier this month.

Can Virginia exact some revenge on its home floor, or will NC State get another win?

The Wolfpack had been rolling along nicely until a setback at home on Saturday against Virginia Tech.

Much of the offensive attack is predicated on DJ Burns, so when he gets in foul trouble — like he did against the Hokies — things get a lot more difficult.

In the first matchup against Virginia, Jayden Taylor and Dennis Parker Jr. combined for 30 points and shot over 50% from the floor.

Those two have been up and down since that game and NC State needs them to be more consistent the rest of the way.

Isaac McKneely has been Virginia's most reliable shot maker, so look for NC State to try to take him away. Notably, McKneely scored in the first matchup between these teams.

Lastly, it will be paramount for the Wolfpack to keep Virginia's bigs, Ryan Dunn and Blake Buchanan, off the offensive glass.

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Be very careful if you're wanting to write off Virginia.

Yes, this team has looked out of sorts at various points, including in blowout losses to Notre Dame, Wake Forest and NC State.

That being said, Tony Bennett has made a living out of flipping the script and catapulting his teams to the top of the conference standings.

Virginia doesn't have the playmakers to be an elite offensive team, but it can certainly be more efficient, which has started to be the case in recent weeks.

Reece Beekman is an All-ACC type of player, McKneely can really shoot it and Jordan Minor has come on with a heavier workload lately.

On the other end of the floor, Virginia is still very strong defensively — as it has been throughout Bennett's tenure.

Virginia ranks 14th nationally in Ken Pom's adjDE and is holding opponents well under 50% shooting from the floor.

Virginia's defense should fare far better against the Wolfpack this time around.

Virginia has been playing much better basketball lately and this is a classic revenge spot at John Paul Jones Arena.

Look for Bennett to slow the tempo and make this a half-court game, where the Wolfpack offense has often struggled this season.

Virginia will make NC State work for every bucket, and I don't expect the Cavaliers to shoot as poorly as they did in the first matchup between these teams.

I'm laying the four with Virginia and would play it all the way up to 5.5.

Pick: Virginia -4 (Play to 5.5)

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