Spread and Over/Under Predictions for Virginia Tech vs Cal

Berkeley, Ca. — Two new conference opponents are playing each other for the first time. Despite the long history of Cal and Virginia Tech’s men’s basketball programs, they have never played before today’s matchup, and their first game against each other will ironically be a conference matchup.

Virginia Tech is coming off another game against a new West Coast conference opponent. The Hokies faced off against Stanford in Maples Pavillion for the first time as an ACC opponent. After an admittedly strong first half from Virginia Tech, the Cardinal jumped on the Hokies in the second half and Stanford won 70-59.

Toibu Lawal was always available under the rim, scoring 15 points with plenty of them coming as impressive inside-the-paint scores. Lawal had two showtime dunks and one insane reverse layup to keep the Hokies in the game. Lawal has shown on plenty of occasions why he is one of the most athletic players in basketball, not just college basketball. Lawal has a 49.5-inch vertical and can throw it down with absolute authority. In a Virginia Tech offense that tends to have a different highing scorer in each game, Lawal remains consistent. He doesn’t need to be the No. 1 option, but his athleticism keeps the Hokies in the game.

Ben Burnham had a standout performance against Stanford. Not only was he unloading threes like it was nobody’s business, Burnham led the team in scoring off the bench and only had one turnover in the entirety of the game. He caught fire through the game and hit four consecutive threes and ended the game with 18 points and 4 rebounds. He will never again be as open as he was against Stanford, but his three-point shooting ability will always remain. He’s shooting 48.7% from beyond the arc this year after transferring in from Charleston.

If you don’t know about Andrej Stojakovic, you are living under a rock. The sophomore guard from Cal is second in the ACC in scoring per game. Stojakovic shoots 36.8% from beyond the arc and he has been wreaking havoc on ACC teams. The dynamic guard had 30 points on 73.3% shooting against Clemson. Andrej also dropped 23 against Virginia and 19 against Pitt. Stojakovic is a nightmare to prepare against defensively and he’s only gotten better as the season progresses.

Odds

At Fanduel Sportsbook, the Golden Bears are 7.5 point favorites over the Hokies at home, and the over/under is set at 145.5.

Predictions

This is definitely a hard one to predict. On on hand, the Hokies had substantial leads in their game against Stanford which runs through a similar offensive pattern, but the Hokies also lost by 11 and skated by in the second half. I’d agree with the spread and give a slight edge to Cal, but 7.5 points is a lot for a team that has struggled.

The X-Factor is definitely Stojakovic, if he plays well, this game isn’t close.

Final Score: Virginia Tech 62, Cal 70 (Cal -7.5 covers + Under)

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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