Louisville Cardinals vs Virginia Tech Hokies Prediction, 3/3/2021 College Basketball Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Louisville Cardinals vs Virginia Tech Hokies

Date: Wednesday, March 3, 2021

Location: Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, VA

TV: ESPN2

Odds/Point Spread: Louisville (+2)

The Virginia Tech Hokies (15-5) play the Louisville Cardinals (13-5) at Cassell Coliseum on Wednesday. Louisville opens this matchup as 2-point underdogs. The O/U is set at 130.

Louisville enters this game with a mark of 13-5 so far this year. They have an average of 69.2 points per outing (241st in Division 1) while connecting on 44.2% from the field. The Cardinals are connecting on 30.7% on shots from 3-point land (95 of 309) and 72.0% from the free throw line. As a unit, Louisville is collecting 38.6 rebounds per contest and has 206 assists so far this year, which has them ranked 300th in D-1 in terms of passing the ball. They are giving up possession 12.1 times per game and as a squad they commit 17.3 fouls on a nightly basis. On the defensive end of the court, the Cardinals are forcing 11.4 turnovers per contest and they draw 17.7 fouls. They give up 30.5% on three-point shots and they are ranked 66th in D-1 in points per game allowed (66.2). The Cardinals defense is giving up and opponent field goal percentage of 41.6% (429 of 1,031) and they relinquish 32.9 boards per game as a team. They are currently ranked 76th in college hoops in giving up assists to the opposition with 219 conceded for the season.

The Louisville Cardinals played the Duke Blue Devils and walked away with a win by a score of 80-73 in their last contest. Louisville finished the game with a 45.5% FG percentage (30 out of 66) and buried 4 of their 12 shots from 3-point land. From the charity stripe, the Cardinals made 16 of 24 shots for a percentage of 66.7%. When discussing hauling in rebounds, they collected a total of 39 with 14 of them being offensive. They also distributed 12 assists for the matchup as well as creating 12 turnovers and earning 6 steals. When it comes to defense, Louisville allowed their opponent to shoot 44.8% from the field on 26 of 58 shooting. Duke recorded 17 assists and had 7 steals for the game. Moreover, Duke snagged 30 rebounds (6 offensive, 24 defensive) and added 5 blocked shots. Duke finished the contest at 73.9% from the free throw line by making 17 of their 23 attempts. They made 4 of their 21 attempts from 3-point land.

Carlik Jones is a guy who was a major contributor for the matchup. He notched 25 points on 9 of 18 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 44 mins and also grabbed 6 rebounds. Jones went 50.0% from the floor and distributed 4 dimes. Someone else that played a role in the game for the Cardinals was Jae'lyn Withers. He snagged 9 rebounds in 36 minutes on the court. He went 60.0% from the field for this contest by going 6-of-10 (16 points). When the game finished, Withers went home without an assist.

Virginia Tech has a mark of 15-5 this season. When it comes to offense, the Hokies are hitting on 45.1% from the floor, which is ranked 128th in the nation. Virginia Tech has scored 1,442 points on the year (72.1 per game) and they grab 35.3 boards per game. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 14.3 times per contest (103rd in the nation) and they turn it over 11.7 times per contest. The Hokies commit 16.0 personal fouls per contest and they go 70.3% from the charity stripe. The Hokies on the defensive end are ranked 48th in college hoops in points per game surrendered with 64.8. They have conceded 10.8 dimes and 31.5 boards every game, which is 38th and 37th in Division 1. The Virginia Tech defense allows 32.7% on 3-point shots (143 of 437) and their opponents are knocking down 70.5% of their free throw attempts. They are able to force 11.9 TO's every game and allow teams to shoot 41.7% from the floor (97th in college basketball).

When they last stepped on the hardwood, the Virginia Tech Hokies walked away with a victory by a final of 84-46 when they faced the Wake Forest Demon Deacons. The Hokies corralled 30 defensive rebounds and 6 offensive rebounds for a total of 36 for the game. They coughed up the ball 9 times, while earning 9 steals in the matchup. The Demon Deacons were called for 14 personal fouls in this contest which took the Hokies to the charity stripe for a total of 16 attempts. They were able to bury 9 of the free throw attempts for a rate of 56.3%. In reference to shots from downtown, Virginia Tech converted 13 of 24 tries (54.2%). Overall, the Hokies finished shooting 31 out of 58 from the field which had them shooting 53.4%. The Hokies permitted the Demon Deacons to make 15 of 55 tries from the floor which gave them a rate of 27.3% for the contest. They finished shooting 31.3% from 3-point land via 10 out of 32 and finished the contest at 6 of 13 from the free throw line (46.2%). When discussing team rebounding, Virginia Tech permitted Wake Forest to pull down 30 in total (8 on the offensive side).

Keve Aluma ended up having an impact for the Hokies for this contest. He made 9 out of 11 for this contest giving him a field goal percentage of 81.8%, and added 8 rebounds. Aluma recorded 23 points in his 20 minutes of playing time and had 1 assist for the contest. Someone else that was pivotal for Virginia Tech was Tyrece Radford. He ended up finishing with 2 assists in his 28 mins on the court, and he knocked down 5 of 7 from the floor. Radford finished going 71.4% from the floor as well as collecting 15 points and 6 rebounds.

Who will win tonight's college basketball game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Louisville (+2)

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here