Virginia 2019 March Madness Final Four Betting Analysis

Virginia 2019 March Madness Final Four Betting Analysis

The Virginia Cavaliers march to their first Final Four since 1984 and only their third Final Four in history on Saturday when they take on the Auburn Tigers. The Cavaliers are the odds favorite to win the 2019 National Championship. Check out Virginia’s Final Four odds, an analysis of their team, and a prediction as to how far they’ll get in this year’s Final Four.

Final Four Bracket: Printable March Madness Bracket 2019

Virginia 2019 March Madness Final Four Betting Analysis

  • 2019 College Basketball Championship Odds: +150

Team Stats

Offense
  • Total Score: 71.28
  • Field Goal Percentage: 47.38
  • Three-Point Percentage: 39.35
  • Free Throw Percentage: 74.42
  • Total Rebounds: 34.78

Defense

  • Total Score: 55.36
  • Field Goal Percentage: 38.41
  • Three-Point Percentage: 28.72
  • Free Throw Percentage: 65.66
  • Total Rebounds: 29.56

Texas Tech 2019 March Madness Final Four Betting Analysis

The Virginia Cavaliers ran roughshod over their Atlantic Coast Conference opponents during the regular season. The only two teams in the ACC to beat Virginia, the only two teams to beat Virginia period this season, were the Duke Blue Devils and Florida State Seminoles. Duke beat Virginia twice while Florida State took Virginia down in the ACC Tournament.

Since the loss to Florida State, Virginia’s been untouchable in the NCAA Tournament. The Cavaliers dominated Weber State 71-56, they beat Oklahoma 63-51, outlasted Oregon 53-49, and beat Purdue 80-75 in overtime.

The most important game in the sequence is the battle with Purdue in the Elite Eight. The Cavaliers needed a last-second shot to tie the game in regulation. Then once in regulation, they instilled their will on the Bolilermakers.

More importantly? Virginia was forced to play a more up and down game. The fact they survived and prevailed should give their backers hope.

Virginia Cavaliers Playing Style

Since Tony Bennett took over as head coach, the Cavaliers have been known as a fearsome defensive first college hoops squad. Virginia plays a man-to-man/zone hybrid defense that’s effective when they switch off correctly. It’s so effective that teams are faced with a coin toss dilemma when they take on the Cavaliers.

Virginia is the favorite for the 2019 March Madness Final Four round.

Play in the half court and Virginia most likely shuts you down. Run and gun and the Cavaliers could force you into bad shots because they get back on defense so quickly. Either way, the Cavaliers beat you. Virginia’s patient, man to zone switching defense, has been effective since Bennett’s first day on the job.

Auburn 2019 March Madness Final Four Betting Preview

Virginia Cavaliers Final Four Betting Prediction

The Virginia Cavaliers only allow 55.4 points per game. That ranks first in college basketball. Although no team in the Final Four plays defense as well as the Cavaliers, Virginia’s not a great overall shooting team. They can most definitely put the rock through the net when firing from three, but their field goal percentage is only 47.4, which is good but not great.

Almost as important is the fact that when Virginia’s lost, it’s been to teams that are more athletic than they are. The Duke Blue Devils and Florida State Seminoles beat the Cavaliers by using their athleticism to get open looks before UVA could set their defense.

Unfortunately for Virginia, that’s exactly the style Auburn plays. The Tigers play great defense, they blocked Kentucky plenty of times in their Elite Eight win, but they really excel on offense where they set up open looks from behind the arc by sending one or two players to the paint.

The Tigers will use that athleticism to upset Virginia on Saturday. Auburn’s the worst possible matchup for the Virginia Cavaliers. The betting prediction here is that Virginia loses to Auburn on the moneyline in their Final Four Semifinal game.

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