Virginia Opens As A Slight Favorite On Sunday Against Tennessee In Second Round Matchup

The Virginia Cavaliers have won an NCAA Tournament for the first time since winning the national championship in 2019. The Hoos played a tight back and forth against a Wright State team that had a big upset on their mind, but UVA came through and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament, where they will face Tennessee.

Tennessee and Virginia are similar teams that are built around defense, though UVA used their offense to propel themselves to a win on Friday. This is expected to be a tight game and the opening odds reflected that.

According to Fanduel Sportsbook, Virginia opens as a small 1.5 point favorite against the Volunteers and the over/under is set at 137.5. While UVA might be the favorite, Tennessee might see a lot of experts pick them to win this game after the close call that Virginia had against Wright State.

Can UVA play a cleaner game?

Virginia Cavaliers Basketbal — Mar 20, 2026; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Virginia Cavaliers guard Jacari White (6) celebrates after the game against the Wright State Raiders during a first round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Ross-Imagn Images | Kyle Ross-Imagn Images

There were various points in the game where it looked like the Cavaliers season was doomed, but players like Jacari White were able to lead them through it.

After the game, UVA head coach Ryan Odom talked about if he had to help his team maintain composure throughout the game:

"I don't know about that. I think when you get to this level, you get to this tournament, all these teams belong here. Wright State has had a great season. They got off to a hot start. You saw it. One of the benefits for us was watching yesterday and not playing on Thursday. You got a chance to see some other teams and how momentum can really shift. I think the biggest thing that I'm proud of with these guys is they stay together and they trust their training. They understood that defensively, we weren't at our best in the first half. We weren't -- we were on our heels too much and we weren't forcing them into harder shots. They were too comfortable.

We encouraged the guys at halftime. We have to go for it on defense. We have to make them miss, and we have to force hard shots. We'll be able to clean those rebounds up if we do that. It did play out that way. Certainly, there were tense moments back and forth, but really proud of the way the guys stood up on the defensive end."

While UVA was expected to win big against Wright State, that is not going to be the case on Sunday. It is going to take a tremendous effort for Virginia to move past Tennessee and get to the Sweet Sixteen in Odom's first season.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
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