Furman vs. Virginia Bracket Prediction: March Madness Odds
NCAA Tournament South Region action tips off from Orlando on Thursday afternoon, and No. 4 seed Virginia of the ACC might be on upset alert against No. 13 Furman of the Southern Conference. The Cavs opened as 4.5-point favourites on the college basketball odds and have moved to -5.5 since.
NCAA Tournament Point Spread and Betting
The winner of this game faces either No. 5 San Diego State or No. 12 Charleston in the Round of 32. No. 13 seeds have a 31-117 record all-time against No. 4 seeds. None of the 13 seeds won last year. In 2021, two did: North Texas over Purdue and Ohio over … Virginia.
Furman is making its seventh NCAA appearance with the previous six trips coming from 1971-80. The Paladins’ lone win was in 1974 when All-American Clyde Mayes led a 75-67 victory over South Carolina. To reach its first Sweet 16, Furman is +792 with no at -2500.
UVA will make its 25th overall NCAA Tournament appearance and first since earning a No. 4 seed in the 2021 NCAA Tournament when as noted above it as upset in Round 1 by No. 13 Ohio. The Wahoos have an all-time tournament record of 35-23 and won the 2019 national title.
The lone meeting between these schools was a 79-67 Virginia home win in December 2004.
Furman Paladins (13)
In case you were wondering, Furman is in Greenville, S.C. The Paladins (27-7) shared the Southern Conference regular-season title with Samford and then won the conference tournament with an 88-79 win over Chattanooga. Furman’s only loss in its past 15 games was by four at The Citadel on Feb. 15. The team’s 27 victories are a school record. Jalen Slawson and Mike Bothwell are both finalists for the Lou Henson Mid-Major Player of the Year Award and both were first team All-Southern Conference selections. Bothwell leads the team at 18.0 ppg, while Slawson averages 15.7 points, 7.1 rebounds and 3.2 assists. He was the SoCon Player of the Year. Bob Richey is in his sixth year as head coach. The Paladins are 14-5 ATS in their last 19 games overall.
Virginia Cavaliers (4)
Virginia (25-7) tied for the ACC regular-season title with Miami but lost to red-hot Duke 59-49 in the ACC Tournament title game. UVA is what it always is under Coach Tony Bennett: Stellar defensively and questionable on offence. Armaan Franklin leads at 12.5 ppg, but Jayden Gardner (12.1 ppg, 5.8 rpg) is the best player. Both Franklin and Gardner are transfers. The team got some bad news ahead of its ACC Tournament opener when forward Ben Vander Plas (7.4 ppg, 4.6 rpg) broke his hand in practice and was lost for the season. Centres Francisco Caffaro and Kadrin Shedrick, who stand 7-foot-1 and 6-foot-11, respectively, played more than in the ACC Tournament without Vander Plas. UVA is 2-6-1 ATS in its past nine.
