It is a matchup of Top 20 teams in college hoops on Wednesday night, as the Michigan State Spartans take on the Virginia Cavaliers in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. The Spartans come into this game with the higher ranking and the better record, but Virginia will have the home court edge. Let’s look at the game between the Spartans and Cavaliers and college basketball picks.
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Michigan State Spartans
The Spartans are coming off a game on Sunday against Western Michigan and assuming they win that game as expected they will enter Wednesday’s matchup with Virginia unbeaten at 5-0. The Spartans have had their ups and downs, but they have beaten one quality opponent in Duke and they did enough to beat Eastern Michigan, Notre Dame and Detroit. The win against Detroit was not impressive, as the Spartans just squeaked by, winning 83-76. They did not have Joshua Langford in that game and they were coming off the win over Duke, so a letdown was likely. Langford dressed against Detroit but didn’t play, so it seems likely that he will be on the floor for this Wednesday game against Virginia. Michigan State is averaging about 80 points per game but they are giving up 70 per contest.
Virginia Cavaliers
The Cavaliers come into this game at 3-1 and coming off an overtime win against Kent State. Sam Hauser scored six of the nine points in overtime and Virginia escaped with a 71-64 win. It was an ugly win for Virginia, as they turned the ball over 12 times and Virginia’s defense was poor throughout the game. Hauser and Jay Huff led Virginia with 18 points apiece, and Kihei Clark had 14. Virginia has not looked good in three of their four games this season, as the only really good performance was the opening win against Towson. Virginia is averaging about 74 points per game but they are giving up 57 per contest. Hauser leads the team in scoring at just over 14 points per game.
Player to Watch
The best player for Michigan State in their last three games has been Rocket Watts. He has averaged over 18 points per game of late and he has carried Michigan State to victory. He has a lot of pressure on him this season as he follows in the footsteps of Cassius Winston, but so far Watts has played well. He had 13 points and six assists against Notre Dame, 20 points in the win over Duke and he had a career-high 23 points in the win over Detroit. If Virginia can’t find a way to contain Watts on Wednesday then it is going to be a long night for the Cavaliers.
Free College Basketball ATS Picks
I have not been that impressed with either team, but Michigan State has at least looked good at times. Virginia hasn’t played that well except for their opener and they have yet to play anyone that is close to the level of Michigan State. Tony Bennett may eventually get this Virginia team playing the way he wants, but they are not there yet. The line on this game is likely to give the Cavaliers way too much respect. I will lay the points and take Michigan State in this contest.
College Basketball Odds: Michigan State 75, Virginia 63
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