No. 18 Virginia Cavaliers at No. 24 Florida State Seminoles
Saturday, 2/4/12, 1:00 PM EST, TV: ESPN3
Opening Point Spread: Florida State -5
Current Betting Line: Florida State -4.5
Opening Total: 114.5
Current Total: 114.5
Odds Courtesy of Bookmaker
Virginia is looking for its fourth consecutive win and also capture its sixth true win of the season, something the program hasn’t accomplished since the 1994-95 campaign. The Cavaliers are coming off a 65-61 win over the Clemson Tigers as 7.5-point home favorites, while going “over” the posted total of 112.5. The program has lost 14-straight games played in the state of Florida, including eight games in this particular series. Saturday’s contest will be the first meeting with both teams being ranked since 1992-93. Virginia is 5-0 ATS on the road this season.
The Cavaliers continue to be led by senior forward Mike Scott, who managed to score 23 points and grab 10 rebounds versus the Tigers. He is the ACC’s active leader in points, rebounds and double-doubles. Dating back to last season, the program has proven victorious in seven of its last eight true road games. Virginia is second in the nation in scoring defense, giving up 51.1 points per game.
Florida State has won a school record-tying six consecutive ACC games and has managed to cover each of those games. The Seminoles registered an impressive 68-54 win over the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets as 12-point home favorites last time out, while going “under” the total for the second straight game. “We are in a position that we have never been in before,’ commented Seminoles head coach Leonard Hamilton about being atop the conference standings at this stage. Florida State is 8-2 ATS at home this year.
The Seminoles are the only team in the ACC with multiple wins over top-five ranked teams, while being one of only two programs to have a perfect record in conference play (North Carolina). Junior All-American and All-ACC candidate Michael Snaer is certainly a player to watch Saturday, averaging 16.3 points and shooting 58.3 percent from beyond the arc during the team’s current win streak. Florida State is the third winningest program in the ACC in the last four years, averaging 23.3 wins per season in the previous three campaigns. The program relies heavily on its starters, receiving just five points from its reserves in its latest win.
Bettors will likely back the Seminoles due to their 16-5-1 ATS mark versus conference opponents, while the Cavaliers are 2-9 ATS in the last 11 meetings in this series.
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