Sunday, December 7th, 2014

There are 3 ACC basketball games today and all of them take place on ACC home courts.

Predictions and Analysis

Radford vs Virginia Tech - 3:00pm

Believe it or not, this should actually be a competitive game.  Both teams hold a record of 4-3 and neither are playing great basketball at the moment.  I'm leaning towards Virginia Tech winning this game due to their height advantage and their ability to knock down the 3-point shot.  However, if Radford locks down the perimeter defense, then this game could go the other way.

My pick:  Virginia Tech

East Carolina vs. #12 UNC - 3:00pm

UNC is a 22.5 point favorite in this contest.  I don't see them winning by more than 22 points, but I do think they'll win.  They came into this season slightly overrated, and their two loses to Butler and Iowa have reminded them that there's always room to improve.  Another thing about UNC is that they must learn how to play together as a team as there isn't a "star" this year to guide the way to victory.  The two advantages they have going for them against ECU is their ability to block shots (6 per game) and their ability to share the ball (17 assists per game).

My pick:  UNC

#18 Arkansas vs Clemson - 5:00pm

Even though Arkansas is currently ranked #18 in the country, they are only a 4 point favorite in this match-up.  Arkansas will win by more than 4 points in this contest. Arkansas has a commanding advantage in steals (9 per game), assists (21 per game), and 3-pointers (9 per game).  Even with the home court advantage, Clemson will need a miracle to pull off this upset.

My pick:  Arkansas (Arkansas will cover the spread)

We'll check in tomorrow to see how I did with my first predictions of the year!  Go ACC!

Jon