Wake Forest Demon Deacons vs Virginia Cavaliers Prediction, 3/3/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Wake Forest Demon Deacons vs Virginia Cavaliers

Date: Tuesday, March 3, 2026

Location: John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, VA

TV: ACC Network

The Wake Forest Demon Deacons (14-14) are hitting the road to John Paul Jones Arena on Tuesday where they will play the Virginia Cavaliers (25-3).

The Wake Forest Demon Deacons faced off with Syracuse and walked away with a win by a score of 88-83 in their last contest. Concerning personal fouls, the Demon Deacons walked away with 16 and Syracuse finished the game with 14 personal fouls. They made 13 out of their 26 shots from distance. Syracuse finished shooting 82.4% at the charity stripe by making 14 of 17 attempts. In addition, Syracuse grabbed 16 rebounds (4 offensive, 12 defensive), but wrapped up the game with no rejections. Syracuse dished out 16 dimes and had 5 steals for the game. In relation to defense, Wake Forest allowed their opponent to shoot 51.9% from the field on 28 of 54 shooting. They also doled out 19 assists for this contest as well as creating 7 turnovers and getting 6 steals. When it comes to hauling in rebounds, they compiled 27 with 8 of them being offensive. At the free throw line, the Demon Deacons converted 13 of their 15 shots for a rate of 86.7%. Wake Forest ended the game with a 57.9% field goal percentage (33 out of 57) and buried 9 out of their 16 three-point shots.

Myles Colvin is a guy who was a factor in this matchup. He finished the game shooting 75.0% from the floor and also distributed 3 dimes. He was on the court for 37 minutes and snagged 8 boards. He notched 32 points on 9 out of 12 shooting.

Get all of our NCAA Picks Today

Wake Forest will take the court with a win-loss mark of 14-14 on the year. They have an average of 78.8 points per contest (114th in the country) while shooting 44.8% from the floor. The Demon Deacons are shooting 33.8% on 3-pointers (254 of 752) and 76.5% from the charity stripe. As a team, Wake Forest is snagging 33.0 boards per contest and has racked up 400 assists on the campaign, which is 193rd in the nation in terms of passing the rock. They are turning it over 10.9 times per game and as a group are committing 18.6 personal fouls per game.

On the defensive end of the court, the Demon Deacons are forcing 13.3 turnovers per game and they draw 18.2 personal fouls. They are giving up 32.8% on three-point shots and they rank 261st in D-1 in PPG allowed (76.9). The Demon Deacons are giving up a shooting percentage of 44.6% (732 of 1,640) and they surrender 35.2 boards per contest as a team. They rank 299th in Division 1 in giving up assists to the opposition with 431 relinquished for the season.

The last time they took the court, the Virginia Cavaliers went home defeated by a final of 77-51 when they played Duke. The Cavaliers were able to snag 18 defensive rebounds and 7 offensive boards for a total of 25 for this game. They also coughed up the ball 8 times, while getting 4 steals for the contest. Duke committed 16 personal fouls for the game which got the Cavaliers to the charity stripe for a total of 13 attempts. They were able to convert 12 of the free throw attempts for a clip of 92.3%. In relation to shots from beyond the arc, Virginia made 7 out of their 35 tries (20.0%). Overall, the Cavaliers walked away from this one shooting 16 for 55 from the floor which gave them a rate of 29.1%. The Cavaliers permitted Duke to bury 26 of their 53 tries from the floor which had them at 49.1% in the matchup. They went 50.0% from beyond the perimeter by going 12 out of 24 and finished the game at 13 of 14 at the free throw line (92.9%). In reference to how they cleaned up the glass, Virginia allowed Duke to snag 34 in all (5 on the offensive side).

Thijs De Ridder was important for the Cavaliers for this contest. He scored 16 points in his 20 minutes on the court, but wasn't able to earn an assist. He made 5 of 11 for the contest for a rate of 45.5%, and accumulated 3 rebounds.

Virginia has a win-loss mark of 25-3 this year. The Cavaliers are committing 18.0 fouls per game and they hit 71.1% from the free throw line. Their rate of earning assists is at 17.0 times per game (36th in college) and they are turning it over 10.9 times per game. Virginia has totaled 2,305 pts on the year (82.3 per contest) and they snag 41.3 rebounds per game. As an offensive unit, the Cavaliers are connecting on 46.8% from the floor, which ranks 96th in college.

The Cavaliers are ranked 38th in Division 1 in PPG given up with 67.8. They are forcing 11.0 TO's every game and have allowed teams to shoot 39.3% from the field (12th in college). The Virginia defense surrenders 30.0% from downtown (182 of 607) and opponents are making 73.8% of their free throw attempts. They surrender 11.5 dimes and 32.5 boards on a nightly basis, which ranks them 43rd and 70th in those categories on the defensive end.

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Wake Forest

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

Get college basketball picks on every single game, or if you want our very best bets by the experts, sign up for your free $60 account with a guarantee.