Top 25 teams will go head-to-head on Saturday when the No. 23 NC State Wolfpack host the No. 12 Virginia Tech Hokies at PNC Arena for a noon ET tipoff. The Hokies have had the better season, with neutral-floor wins over Purdue and Washington on their resume. However, they'll likely be without point guard Justin Robinson on Saturday and that helps make the home team three-point favorites in the latest NC State vs. Virginia Tech odds with the total set at 151.5. Still, with these teams fighting for positioning in a crowded ACC race, you should expect a battle. Which is why you'll want to check out the NC State vs. Virginia Tech picks and predictions from the advanced computer model at SportsLine before you lock in your own selections.
The SportsLine Projection Model, which simulates every game 10,000 times, has raked in the winnings for those following its picks. Over the past two years, the SportsLine Projection Model has returned over $5,200 to $100 players on its top-rated college basketball picks. It entered Week 13 of the 2018-19 college basketball season on a strong 22-10 run on top-rated college basketball picks against the spread. Anyone who has followed it is way up.
Now, the model takes aim at NC State vs. Virginia Tech. We can tell you the model is leaning Over, and it also has a strong against the spread pick that hits in over 50 percent of simulations. You absolutely need to see it before you lock in your own picks.
For Saturday's battle between these two ranked squads, the model knows that Virginia Tech's shot quality will be a critical element to the game with Justin Robinson (ankle) expected to be out with an injury.
Robinson is the school's all-time leader in assists, so Nickeil Alexander-Walker will have to take on a more ball-dominant role in the offense. Luckily, Alexander-Walker is pretty well-equipped to handle the job.
The sophomore is second on the team in assists and actually has possession of the ball slightly more often than Robinson when he is on the floor. He's also their most effective finisher at the rim, so if he could use his ability to get to the tin to force the NC State defense to collapse and create open looks for the second-ranked 3-point shooting team in the nation, it could mask Robinson's absence.
However, don't expect the Wolfpack to make it easy on the Hokies to cover the NC State vs. Virginia Tech spread.
Coming off the thrilling buzzer-beating win over Clemson last Saturday and an emotional overtime loss to No. 3 Virginia on Tuesday, the Wolfpack have seen it all in the last week. However, what they should be taking away from it is that they're equipped to compete with anybody, especially in their own building.
Against Virginia Tech, look for the Wolfpack to take advantage of far superior depth on Saturday. Even with Robinson in the lineup, the Hokies are 314th in the nation in bench minutes played while the Wolfpack go 10-deep and rank 35th in bench minutes. They'll have a great chance to tire the Hokies out and win the hustle stats and on the offensive glass for a significant advantage.
Who wins NC State vs. Virginia Tech? And which side of the spread hits in over 50 percent of simulations? Visit SportsLine now to find out which side of the NC State vs. Virginia Tech spread you should be all over Saturday, all from the model that has returned more than $5,000 to $100 players the last two years.
