The Wake Forest Demon Deacons take on the Virginia Cavaliers in Charlottesville, VA. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. ET on ACC Network.
Virginia is favored by 14.5 points on the spread with the moneyline set at -1350. The total is set at 148 points.
Here’s my Wake Forest vs. Virginia predictions and college basketball picks for March 3, 2026.
Wake Forest vs Virginia Prediction
My Pick: 1H Under 69.5
My Wake Forest vs Virginia best bet is on the first half under. For all of your college basketball bets, be sure to find the best lines by using our live NCAAB odds page.
Wake Forest vs. Virginia Odds
| Wake Forest Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+14.5 -110 | 148.5 -105o / -115u | +800 |
| Virginia Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-14.5 -110 | 148.5 -105o / -115u | -1350 |
- Wake Forest vs Virginia spread: Virginia -14.5
- Wake Forest vs Virginia over/under: 148 points
- Wake Forest vs Virginia moneyline: Wake Forest +800, Virginia -1350
Wake Forest vs Virginia College Basketball Betting Preview
Wake Forest Basketball
The conference season has been rough for the Demon Deacons, who are 6-10 against ACC foes. We've seen them struggle mightily on the defensive end, as some of the higher-octane offense teams — like Duke and NC State — have run them out of the gym.
However, in this matchup, they have a bit of a saving grace. The Cavaliers are above average offensively, but they refuse to push the pace. Virginia shoots plenty of triples in a half-court setting and relies on its tremendous offensive rebounding to garner second possessions.
There's plenty of variance in their offensive attack, and while the Demon Deacons aren't great on the defensive glass, generating misses from long range is well within their range of outcomes here.
On the other end of the court, that theme will likely continue as well. Virginia is one of the most stout defensive teams in the country, ranking eighth in effective field goal percentage allowed and 17th in adjusted defensive efficiency.
The Cavs are set to be a nightmare for a Wake Forest team that only has two inefficient options to stretch the floor.
Virginia Basketball
The Cavaliers may be 25-4, but their last matchup against Duke showed that there are levels amongst the list of contenders around the country.
The Blue Devils forced Virginia into their worst offensive performance of the season, as they shot just 20% from beyond the arc and lost the battle on the glass by a wide margin.
However, there's a massive discrepancy between Duke and Wake Forest defensively, and we should expect quite the bounce-back performance from Virginia here.
As I highlighted above, Virginia's propensity to shoot a lot of triples — combined with its slow tempo — limits its overall scoring output. Prior to their loss against Duke, the Cavaliers had three straight wins where they put up over 85 points in each game.
Before that stretch, they hadn't eclipsed the 80-point mark since late January. It's clear they regressed in their last matchup, but a 51-point outing is perhaps too low of an outlier, and we should expect that larger offensive regression pattern to continue here with a slow start.
Wake Forest vs. Virginia Betting Analysis
Virginia has been an underdog for years, and that hasn't changed in Ryan Odom's first season at the helm.
The Cavaliers' slow pace and collapsing defense have led them to be 18-11 to the under this season.
Given the variance of their own offense and the high possibility of them shutting down the Demon Deacons in the paint here, we should see this one stay under the first-half total.
My Pick: 1H Under 69.5
