Virginia vs Furman Prediction, Odds & Best Bet for March 16 NCAA Tournament Game (Paladins Challenge Cavaliers)

Virginia vs Furman Game Info

• 2022-23 NCAA Tournament Game
• No. 13 Virginia (25-7) vs. Furman (27-7)
• Date: Thursday, March 16, 2023
• Time: 12:40 p.m. ET
• Venue: Amway Center -- Orlando, Florida
• Coverage: truTV

Thursday, March 16's 2022-23 NCAA Tournament lineup includes some first-round South Region action between the No. 4 Virginia Cavaliers and No. 13 Furman Paladins.

Virginia is hungry for revenge after coming up short in a 59-49 loss to Duke in the ACC Tournament Championship Game. On the other side, Furman has a pep in its step after extending its winning streak to six straight games after defeating Chattanooga 88-79 to win the SoCon Championship.

Can Virginia get back on track at Amway Center? Or will Furman shock the world with a first-round upset win?

Virginia vs Furman Odds & Spread

• All college basketball betting lines, odds and prop bets are from FanDuel Sportsbook.
• Moneyline: UVA: (-230) | FURMAN: (+188)
• Spread: UVA: -5.5 (-110) | FURMAN: +5.5 (-110)
• Total: 132.5 -- Over: (-115) | Under: (-105)

Virginia enters this contest as a clear favorite on the moneyline and spread per FanDuel Sportsbook's odds. This 12:40 p.m. ET clash also features an over/under of 132.5 points with the over being favored at -115 odds.

Virginia vs Furman Betting Trends

• Virginia is 13-19-0 against the spread this year.
• Against the spread as 5.5-point favorites or more, the Cavaliers are 7-13.
• There have been 16 Virginia's games (out of 32) that hit the over this season.
• Furman has beaten the spread 18 times in 31 games.
• The Paladins have no wins ATS (0-1) as a 5.5-point underdog or greater this season.
• There have been 17 Furman games (out of 31) that hit the over this year.

Virginia Rank	Virginia AVG		Furman AVG	Furman Rank
279th	67.8	Points Scored	82.1	8th
6th	60.3	Points Allowed	71.2	214th
301st	29.5	Rebounds	33	99th
304th	6.9	Off. Rebounds	8.9	142nd
240th	6.8	3pt Made	9.5	19th
24th	15.8	Assists	17.1	8th
1st	8.1	Turnovers	10.7	58th

Virginia vs Furman Prediction & Pick

Despite Furman's success, taking on Virginia is another story. The Paladins haven't gone up against a ranked team all season, so they won't be ready for the nation's 13th-best squad. Making matters worse is that they're also 1-13 straight up against their last 14 ACC opponents. For reference, the Cavaliers have overcome each of their last five SoCon foes.

Virginia's defense is going to smother Furman all game long. The Cavaliers allow the sixth-fewest points (60.3 PPG) on a 41.5% field-goal percentage (No. 44) this season. Considering how Duke averages 72.5 PPG (No. 128) and was held to just 59 points by UVA, I don't see Furman having a ton of offensive success.

And while Virginia's attack isn't elite, it should take advantage of a Furman defense that surrenders 71.4 PPG (No. 201). The Cavaliers have already beaten tougher opponents than the Paladins and won't break much of a sweat this week.

Final Score Prediction: Virginia: 75 | Furman: 70

Virginia vs Furman Best Bet

Although I fully expect Virginia to win, covering the 5.5-point spread is another story. On top of being 13-18-1 ATS this season, the Cavaliers have failed to cover in six of their last nine games. On the flip side, Furman is 14-5 ATS in its last 19 contests as well as 11-1 ATS in its last 12 outings on a Thursday.

With momentum from its championship victory playing a role, look for Furman to keep things a bit closer than expected.

Bet: Furman +5.5 (-110)

Devon Platana is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Devon Platana also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username PepeSilvia0. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.