ACC CBB Futures Odds Betting – One to Buy, One to Sell

It’s been a minute since I last reported on the ACC. Truth be told, I wasn’t at all enamored with this conference heading into the regular season, and my stance still holds true with March fastly approaching. A grand total of five teams currently find themselves ranked within the Pomeroy Rating’s top-50 teams with the Virginia Cavaliers ranked the highest of the bunch (No. 16). As such, it comes with little surprise to see 12 teams possessing shorter odds to win the National Championship at BetRivers Sportsbook than the Virginia Cavaliers who currently chime in with a 30-1 return on investment.

Though Tony Bennett’s kids currently sit in the catbird seat of the conference with 12 overall wins, the Pittsburgh Panthers and Miami Hurricanes are right there with them. As such, the Wahoos are only -190 chalk to win the ACC regular season title for the second time in the last three years and sixth time in the last ten. For all intents and purposes, the ACC title race is a three-horse race to the finish. Clemson is likely the only other team with a shot, but Brad Brownell’s kids would need to win out which includes defeating UVA in Charlottesville. Odds of that occurring should be much steeper than their current 12-1 rate of return in my opinion, so there’s limited line value there.

Had the Virginia Cavaliers ultimately fell at Louisville the other night as 16-point favorites, the conference title race would be even more wide open than it already is! The crazy thing about UVA being the frontrunner right now is that both the Panthers and Hurricanes logged wins against them this season. Here are the two teams I’d back and fade the remainder of the year.

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BUY: Miami Hurricanes +300

If you read my piece covering the ACC back in late January, you’ll notice I already endorsed buying a piece of the Miami Hurricanes when they were offering up a 17-1 return on investment after dropping that tough 71-68 decision at PITT as 1.5-point road dogs. Since then, Jim Larranaga’s kids have rattled off four straight wins @Clemson, Duke, Louisville, and @North Carolina. The only game not covered was the 93-85 win over the Cardinals in which they closed gargantuan 20-point favorites. It was however a prime letdown spot after taking the wood to the Dookies the prior game. Now 12-4 SU in conference play and winners of an ACC-high 21 games, it’s now offering up just a 3-1 ROI at BetRivers to win the ACC regular season title for the first time since the 2012-13 season.

The quadrant of Isaiah Wong (16.0 PPG/4.5 RPG/3.5 APG), Jordan Miller (15.0 PPG/5.8 RPG), Norchad Omier (13.8 PPG/9.9 RPG), and Nijel Pack (13.0 PPG) is one of the best in the country. Not only that, they’re extremely fun to watch go about their business! Miami ranks within the top-10 of the most efficient offenses in the country per KenPom (No. 9). While the defense leaves a bit to be desired (No. 119), it’s been coming around. Only four games remain and three come in the comforts of the Watsco Center where they’ve won all previous 14 played games. That rematch with Pittsburgh in the regular season finale would be for all the Tostitos if Virginia slips up over its final five games which is a possibility with @North Carolina and Clemson remaining on the docket. Buy some shares of the Canes if you haven’t already!

SELL: Pittsburgh Panthers +350

Hats off to Jeff Capel for the marvelous job he and his staff have done to get the PITT Panthers basketball program back on track after producing losing campaigns the prior six seasons. This year’s veteran squad has a legit shot of capturing the league title should it continue playing the efficient brand of basketball it’s exhibited at both ends of the court. That being said, I’m still not a believer. The Pomeroy Ratings produce something called a “Luck Factor” and the Panthers rank No. 69 in that category. For reference sake, Virginia clocks in at No. 80 and Miami No. 148; another reason why I’m not entirely sold on the Cavaliers either!

A rough road lies ahead for Pittsburgh who will run up against @Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, Syracuse, @Notre Dame, and @Miami over its final five games. At the very least, Blake Hinson and his mates will need to produce a 4-1 record in those games to have any shot of taking home the regular season title. I don’t foresee it being in the cards!

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