The James Madison Dukes (7-2) and the No. 3 Virginia Cavaliers (7-0) meet Tuesday at John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, Va. Tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET (ACC Network). Below, we analyze Tipico Sportsbook’s lines around the James Madison vs. Virginia odds, and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and bets.
Rankings courtesy of the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll.
The Dukes are coming off a 97-80 win over Eastern Kentucky last time out Friday, covering as 14-point favorites, and have now covered 3 in a row and 6 of 7 games overall. As an underdog of 10.5 or more points, however, JMU is just 1-1 ATS.
The Cavaliers picked up a 62-57 win at home against Florida State in their conference opener Saturday, but Virginia has failed to cover each of the past 3 games overall. The Under is 3-1 in the past 4 games overall, too.
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James Madison at Virginia odds
Provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 6:50 a.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Off the board
- Against the spread (ATS): James Madison +11.5 (-120) | Virginia -11.5 (+100)
- Over/Under (O/U): 133.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
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James Madison at Virginia picks and predictions
Prediction
Virginia 72, James Madison 65
Moneyline
There was no moneyline available at the time of publishing.
Against the spread
JAMES MADISON +11.5 (-120) leads the nation with 93.3 PPG on offense, hitting 52.7% from the field to rank 2nd in the country. This is a team that has hit 42.2% from downtown too, good for 7th overall.
The Dukes will be a tremendous test for the sturdy defense of Virginia, which allows just 59.0 PPG to rank 25th. It will be interesting to see if the Hoos can slow down the Dukes. When James Madison played at North Carolina, the offense was held to just 64 points, and you can expect similar production here.
Over/Under
OVER 133.5 (-110) is the lean here, but go very, very lightly.
The James Madison offense has been impressive, but in its only real trust test at North Carolina, it withered. Expect Virginia to keep them down, too. But don’t discount the Hoos from being able to run with the Dukes, as UVA has hit 3-pointers at a 42.3% clip, good for 4th in the country.
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