Virginia Tech vs Virginia Prediction, Game Preview, Live Stream, Odds and Picks
Hokies and Cavaliers Meet for 155th Time
The Virginia Tech Hokies expect to have guard Hunter Cattoor on the court for Wednesday’s Commonwealth Clash against the No. 10 Virginia Cavaliers.
The Hokies have dropped five straight games, the last four sans Cattoor, the MVP of the ACC Tournament last season, who is their best 3-point shooter and defender.
“As important as he is to us, he is not the cure-all,” Virginia Tech coach Mike Young told the media of Cattoor. “Having said that, he is going to guard the other team’s best backcourt player. A lot of things we do, initiate through him. He’s a great receiver, a great cutter, and gets us to a lot of things. He’s a tough hombre, we certainly missed that.”
Cattoor, who is scoring just under 10 points per game, is ninth all-time in Virginia Tech history with 200 career 3-pointers, including 27 of 67 this season (40.3%).
The Cavaliers have their own key player returning to full health in Reece Beekman, who has played through an ankle injury but hasn’t been near as effective.
The junior guard averaged 11.1 points and 5.1 assists as the Cavaliers opened the season with seven wins, then experienced a lull due to the injury as Virginia dropped three games, but was back to his usual self in the recent three-game winning streak.
Beekman has hit nearly 50% from outside the arc (18 of 37) for the Cavaliers, who lead the ACC in 3-point shooting (38.5%) in addition to assists and scoring defense.
Let’s check the latest college basketball odds, stats, injury reports, and college basketball lines for Virginia Tech vs Virginia. We’ve got plenty of NCAA basketball odds for you to consider.
Pedulla To Be Reunited with Cattoor
No one will be happier to see Cattoor return than Sean Pedulla, who struggled mightily in the last four games without his backcourt mate by his side.
The Hokies’ leading-scorer at 16.8 points per game, Pedulla has shot 29.7% from the field and 25% from 3-point land with Cattoor sidelined after making a healthy 48% overall and 36.8% from beyond the arc in Virginia Tech Hokies’ first 13 games.
Only strong shooting from the foul line, where he has made 18 of 18 in the last five games, 25 of 26 in the last six, and 83.3% for the season has preserved Pedulla’s double figures scoring streak, which now sits at 18 games dating to last season.
Vander Plas’ Role Increasing for Cavs
Ben Vander Plas, who gave up a starting role at Ohio University, has begun to get more playing time of late for the Cavaliers and it is showing up on the stat sheet.
The senior guard, who made his second start of the season in Saturday’s nine-point win over Florida State, has averaged 16 points and 7.5 rebounds over the past two games and has made 8-of-19 from 3-point territory in the last three contests.
“Usually when I’m coming off the bench, I’m trying to give a spark,” Vander Plas, whose father Dean Vander Plas was a college teammate of Virginia head coach Tony Bennett, told the media. “But with this start, from the jump, I was trying to be that spark.”
Ben Vander Plas, who has four blocked shots and seven steals in the last five games, scored 1,574 points in his career at Ohio, including 17 points in the Bobcats’ 62-58 win over the Virginia Cavaliers in the first round of the 2021 NCAA Tournament.
Virginia Tech vs Virginia Game Injuries
Virginia Tech vs Virginia Head-to-Head
The Hokies have taken two of the last three meetings, but the Cavaliers have dominated over the long haul, winning 15 of the last 20 matchups.
Virginia leads the all-time series 96-58, including 22-13 in ACC games, 40-14 at home, and 20-7 when they are ranked, and Virginia Tech is not, as is the case in this game.
Virginia Tech vs Virginia Information
- Game: Virginia Tech (11-6, 1-5 ACC) vs Virginia (13-3, 5-2)
- Location: John Paul Jones Arena, Charlottesville, VA
- Day/Time: Wednesday, Jan. 18, 7:00 p.m. ET
- Virginia Tech vs Virginia Live stream: TBS.com
Virginia Tech vs Virginia Betting Lines
Virginia Tech vs Virginia Picks and Prediction
The Cavaliers, who have covered the spread in two of their last 10 games, are laying 7 points on the NCAAB lines. Virginia can improve to 9-1 at home this season.
The Hokies, who have lost five straight vs. the spread, haven’t beaten the Cavaliers in Charlottesville since 2018 and are 1-8 in their last nine games there.
Five of the last 10 games in the series were decided by six or fewer points.
Virginia is listed at -285 in our Las Vegas college basketball odds. This means that if you wager $100 on the Cavaliers, you have a chance to win $35. Virginia Tech is +235, offering a chance to win $235 on a $100 wager.
The implied probability attached to the betting lines gives Virginia a 74.03% chance to win, with the Hokies 29.85%.
