Game Time: 7:00 PM  ET, Sunday, March 20th, 2022

Venue: UNT Coliseum, Denton, Texas

Where to Watch:  ESPN +

 

DraftKings Sportsbook:  North Texas -3; O/U 110.5

Caesars:  Spread:  North Texas -3; O/U 110.5

VegasInsider:  Spread:  North Texas -3; O/U 110.5

FanDuel: Spread:  North Texas -2.5

Virginia: 20-13, #6 Seed NIT Tournament

North Texas: 25-6,  #2 Seed NIT Tournament

An NIT matchup built for an upset.  This is a great betting opportunity… if the numbers agree with the eye-test.  The Virginia Cavaliers defeated Mississippi State 60-57 in the first round of the NIT.  While North Texas beat Texas State 67-63 in overtime on Tuesday Night.  The Winner of Virginia-North Texas will advance to the NIT quarterfinals.  The Winner of this game will face the winner of Oklahoma and St Bonaventure.

The Virginia Cavaliers lost to the University of North Carolina in the ACC conference tournament which ruined their shot at making the NCAA tournament.  The NIT is the consolation prize for Virginia.  Although it is clear that Virginia did not belong in the Tournament this season… The losses for Virginia piled up this season against teams like Wake Forest, North Carolina State, Clemson, Iowa, Houston… the list goes on.  Even though they did have a 1 point win over the Duke Blue Devils, Virginia lost to Duke two weeks later.  The season did not go as the Cavaliers planned or hoped.  Do they have enough in the tank to rise above a #6 Seed and win the NIT?

The North Texas Mean Green are a mystery and they always will be.  They are a Texas school and surrounded by great sports traditions like UT, Texas A&M, Baylor, SMU, Texas Tech, Houston… etc.  North Texas has yet to realize that they should abandon football (where they will never make noise) and focus on basketball… The facilities and recruiting dollars should all be geared towards basketball.  They have no chance in football, why not become the Duke of Texas and just be the best at basketball the state has to offer?... Anyway, NTSU had a great season in Conference USA, they ran the table.  Ay one point NTSU were on a 15 game winning streak before dropping the final regular season game to UTEP… That’s right, the University of Texas- El Paso.  That’s the point when we discuss the differences with these teams… When North Texas runs the table in conference USA they are beating UTSA, UAB, Louisiana Tech, Southern Miss… it’s a deep list of small nobodies that Virginia would have also run the table on.  

The Virginia Cavaliers have won 6 of their last ten games while going 4-4-2 ATS.  Leading scorer and rebounder Jayden Gardner is a 6’6 Forward who drop 15.2 ppg and nabs 6.9 rpg.  He is a senior who transferred to UVA from Eastern Carolina during this last offseason.  He had better stats while he was at ECU (yes, all three years) and came over to Virginia for a last shot at national recognition.  6’2 guard Reece Beckman is the setup man at 4.9 apg, while dropping 8.1 ppg and 3.7 rpg… those stats don’t jump off the page, but they were amassed in a schedule that played Duke, UNC, and Clemson twice… while also single dipping on the likes of Notre Dame, Syracuse, Wake Forest, and Pitt.  Jayden and Reece are already playing in a major league of sorts.

The North Texas Mean Green have won 8 of their last ten games while going 5-4-1 ATS.  Leading scorer Tylor Perry is a true mouse in the house.  A 5’11 PG who drops 13.5 points a game.  The Mean Green’s do everything guy is 6’6 forward Thomas Bell who gets 12.6 ppg, 6.9 rog, and 2.4 apg.  6’10 Forward Abou Ousmane patrols the paint looking to block or alter shots.  This is a formidable lineup… They are on to something with this level of recruiting they could dominate Conference USA for years to come… however… if they were in the ACC they would be a below .500 team… while if Virginia was in Conference USA they would dominate the schedule the same or better than North Texas has… It is a matter of competition. 

Team Del Genio has won 12 of 13 (92%) in all-sports while posting a 6-1 (86%) start to the NCAA Tournament with their lone blemish being the back door cover by Cal St Fullerton against Duke last night! The Team is ON FIRE with a 20 of 27 (74%) all-sports run, and they test their 31 of 46 (67%) NCAA-B run this afternoon in the NCAA Tournament with this side winner! DON’T MISS this Vegas J*A*C*K*P*OT*!! Don't miss out! Get Team Del Genio’s pick!!  It's available right now at the Shop Picks page, where you can find all of the Best Bets from our champion sports handicappers. Also don’t miss Monday’s picks!!  All your NCAA basketball needs for the entire college basketball season!  All your needs in any sport for that matter!   

UVA is 20-13 on the season, but 15-16-2 ATS.  They have logged 15 Overs, 16 Unders, and 2 Push.  They are 6-6 on the road

North Texas is 25-6 on the season, but 16-11-2 ATS.  They have notched 9 Overs and 20 Unders.  They are 13-2 in home games.

Virginia is 332nd in the nation in scoring with 63.6 ppg, 324th in rebounds with 28.9 per game, and 24th in AST/TO ratio with 1.4.  They excel on defense where they rank 12th while holding opponents to 60.4 ppg.

North Texas is 305th in scoring with 65.8 ppg, 249th in rebounds with 31 per game, and 223rd in AST/TO ratio with 1.0.  Defense is where they have redefined “excelling”  The Mean Green are #1 on defense while holding opponents to 55.6 ppg.

Our prediction for Sunday, March 20th is… Virginia 69 - North Texas 59

Virginia is going to show everyone how stats are not equal if one group of them were assembled in the ACC and the other group of stats were assembled in Conference USA.  Bet on Virginia and put the 3 points in your pocket… plus add the Over as part of a parlay.

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These teams have played only once since 1997 with Virginia getting the Win and the Win ATS.

Virginia is 61-30 ATS in road games where the total is set at less than 129.5 since 1997.

North Texas is 33-15 ATS when the total is set at 129.5 or less the last 3 seasons.

North Texas is 14-5 ATS after failing to cover 2 of their last 3 games… the last 3 seasons.

No injuries to report for either team.

Virginia: Kihei Clark, Jayden Gardner, Reece Beckman, Armaan Franklin, Kadin Shedrick

North Texas: Mardrez McBride, Thomas Bell, JJ Murray, Rubin Jones, Abou Ousmane