The No. 6 Virginia Cavaliers will be looking to bounce back from a rough showing against Boston College when they face the North Carolina Tar Heels on Saturday night. Virginia had its four-game winning streak snapped in a 63-48 loss to the Eagles on Wednesday night. North Carolina bounced back from its two-game skid with a 63-59 win at Notre Dame on Wednesday.
Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. ET. The Tar Heels are favored by 3 points in the latest Virginia vs. North Carolina odds from Caesars Sportsbook, while the over/under is set at 131. Before entering any North Carolina vs. Virginia picks, you'll want to see the college basketball predictions from the model at SportsLine.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every Division I college basketball game 10,000 times. The model enters Week 16 of the season 71-42 on all top-rated college basketball picks this season, returning more than $1,700 for $100 players. Anybody who has followed it has seen huge returns.
Now, the model has set its sights on Virginia vs. UNC. You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several college basketball odds for UNC vs. Virginia:
- Virginia vs. North Carolina spread: North Carolina -3
- Virginia vs. North Carolina over/under: 131
- Virginia vs. North Carolina money line: North Carolina -165, Virginia +140
- Virginia vs. North Carolina picks: See picks here
Why North Carolina can cover
Virginia is coming off a dreadful performance against Boston College on Wednesday, getting held under 50 points for the first time this season while shooting a season-worst 32.2% from the floor. The Cavaliers missed 17 of 21 attempts from 3-point range and have hit just 27% of their triples over their last five games. They only had one player score in double figures against Boston College.
North Carolina is coming off a win over Notre Dame and will be happy to have star big man Armando Bacot available on Saturday. He sprained his ankle in the opening minute of the loss to Virginia in the first meeting and did not return. Bacot is averaging a double-double with 17.3 points and 11.1 rebounds for the Tar Heels, who are 13-2 in their last 15 home games.
Why Virginia can cover
North Carolina did not look particularly good in its latest outing either, shooting a season-worst 2 of 23 from 3-point range. The Tar Heels also finished with a season low in field goal percentage (33), and they have lost eight of their last 10 games in this series. Virginia did not need hot shooting numbers to beat North Carolina the first time around, going just 6 of 19 from beyond the arc and 11 of 19 from the charity stripe.
Ben Vander Plas scored a game-high 17 points off the bench for Virginia in that win, accounting for a large chunk of the team's 28 bench points. Freshman Isaac McKneely knocked down a pair of 3-pointers against Boston College on Wednesday and is shooting a team-high 40.8% from the perimeter. North Carolina has only covered the spread once in its last eight games this season.
How to make Virginia vs. North Carolina picks
The model has simulated North Carolina vs. Virginia 10,000 times and the results are in. The model is leaning Over, and it's also generated a point-spread pick that is hitting in almost 60% of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.
So who wins Virginia vs. North Carolina? And which side of the spread is hitting almost 60% of the time? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the spread to jump on, all from the advanced model that is 71-42 on its top-rated college basketball picks this season, and find out.
