Easter Sunday is all about the ACC. The Syracuse Orange and Virginia Cavaliers will take to the court in Chicago to determine which will advance to the Final Four to take on the winner of the other All-ACC showdown between North Carolina and Notre Dame.
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HOW THEY GOT HERE
The Cavaliers were not in the mood for messing around on Friday night in the Elite 8. They used a 16-1 run right at the outset of the game to put away Iowa State without much in the way of hassles, and though the lead was cut to seven with just 14 minutes left to play, live bettors enjoyed the way the Hoos finished out the game, including hitting a bunch of foul shots down the stretch when things could've gotten a little dicey.
Syracuse looked like it was dead in the water when it was down six with under three minutes to play against Gonzaga. Defense has always been the calling card for Jim Boeheim, and live bettors figured that out again on Friday night.
However, instead of the 2-3 zone being what frustrated the heck out of the Zags, it was the full court pressure which forced turnovers that made the difference. The Orange forced 17 turnovers against a very good Gonzaga team, and that's what it will really take for live bettors in this one to walk away victorious.
If there's a concern here for the 'Cuse, it's that they haven't played a game against a major conference foe here in the tourney, beating Dayton, Middle Tennessee State and now Gonzaga.
KEY MATCHUP
It's all about the size for the Cavaliers. They can't be afraid to attack the heck out of the 2-3, and that means getting Anthony Gill involved in a big time way once again. Gill is putting on an insane display in the tourney, as he has 19, 19 and 23 points in his three games, and no one has been able to stop him.
Maybe Tyler Roberson will have a shot. Roberson has had a good tournament on the glass, but his biggest contributions have come on the offensive boards, not so much on defense. Roberson had nine offensive rebounds and 12 boards in totality against Domantas Sabonis and the Gonzaga front line on Friday night, and if live bettors have a shot with the underdogs, it'll take him having a really good game against Gill to force someone else to do some damage for the Cavaliers.
KEY STATS & TRENDS
The most notable stat from the Round of 32 game the Cavaliers played against Butler was that they scored on 20 of their first 21 possessions of the second half. On Friday, they had 26 assists on 32 made baskets, and they allowed Iowa State to amass just one offensive rebound for the entire game. That's now three stats which are horrifying to think of if you're Syracuse, especially after getting whipped by UVA in Charlottesville by eight in the only meeting of the year between these teams.
Since beating North Carolina on February 27, Virginia is now 7-1-1 ATS and 8-1 SU in its nine games. Syracuse is now 6-1 ATS in its last seven overall, though it will be a relatively big underdog for the first time since losing in Chapel Hill towards the end of the regular season against North Carolina in this one.
BookMaker offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook! The Elite 8 showdown between the Syracuse Orange and Virginia Cavaliers will start at 6:09 p.m. ET on Sunday, March 27, 2016, at the United Center. The contest will be broadcast on TBS.
