Virginia Seeks ACC Title, Louisville Wants Conference Advantage

Saturday marks the first day of March and soon the madness will begin. NCAA Men’s hoops teams are wrapping up their regular seasons this week and many conferences could see changes in position. Taking a look at Saturday’s games, there’s no better place to start than with the ACC’s No. 4 Syracuse (26-2, 13-2) vs. No. 12 Virginia (24-5, 15-1) game at 4 p.m. ET.

At one time the Syracuse vs. Duke matchup grabbed headlines for this conference but now Virginia is at the top of the conversation as the leader. Sitting one game ahead of the Orange, with a Saturday victory, the Cavaliers could clinch the regular season conference title.

Syracuse has seen its share of battles over the last few weeks, including a loss against Duke one week ago, while Virginia has played against less competition as it hasn’t defeated any of the ACC’s top four teams since January 20. Their schedule only had one matchup against Duke, North Carolina and Syracuse with the only loss coming against the Blue Devils.

So far.

Tyler Ennis

The Orange once looked like the team to beat but since the end of its perfect season against Boston College loss, the team’s wheels came off and you have to wonder if they’ll return on Saturday. Freshman Tyler Ennis has been clutch before and his team will hope he’ll do so again on Saturday if he’s called upon.

Look for both teams to bring their A game with a Virginia win (-4, 116 o/u).

No. 7 Louisville at No. 21 Memphis (2:00 p.m. ET)

For this American Athletic conference battle, Louisville’s (24-4, 13-2) 58-57 win against conference leader Cincinnati on the road last Saturday earned them some credibility and now they’ll hope to do it for a second straight week as they’ll play at Memphis (21-7, 10-5).

In their first meeting on Jan. 9, the Tigers beat the Cardinals 73-67 on their home court and this will be a revenge game. Once again fans will keep their eyes on guards Russ Smith vs. Joe Jackson and Memphis will hope its defense shows up while pushing last week’s 77-68 loss against Houston behind them.

Louisville has won seven consecutive games and is tied with Cincinnati atop the conference. The Cardinals will get the win (-4.5, 143 o/u).

No. 5 Kansas at Oklahoma State (9 p.m. ET)

This game had been highly anticipated at the start of the season but we already know the ending for this conference: Kansas (22-6, 13-2) is again its winner. Oklahoma State (18-10, 6-9) still has its eyes on going to the Big Dance through an at-large berth with its seven-game losing streak; however, this would make them only the second team since the 1985 NCAA expansion to do so, according to ESPN Stats & Info.

Joel Embiid

Fortunately for them, Marcus Smart is playing well since returning from his three-game suspension but this may come to a halt on Saturday as he’s struggled against Kansas in the past (see 13-for-45, 1-for-17 in 3-pointers against them). Factor in playing against Kansas’ fresh phenom Joel Embiid, who had the team’s number (13 points, 11 rebounds and eight blocks) in the Jan.18 game, a 80-78 loss.

With a win, Kansas will outright secure the conference title but basketball fans know stranger things have happened. The Jayhawks get the win (-1, 149.5 o/u).

No. 10 Saint Louis at VCU (6 p.m. ET)

Just two days ago, Saint Louis (25-3, 12-1) saw its 19-game win streak come to an end against Duquesne, 71-64. At home.

Turnovers have been a thorn in its side all season and against Duquesne, they had 16. Contributing to the loss was the lack of success with 3-pointers: 4 for 23.

Unlucky for the team, VCU (21-7, 9-4) sits in the top spot nationally for defensive turnover rate.

These teams previously met two weeks ago and the Billikens won 64-62 with 17 turnovers. The Rams need a big win to pad their postseason resume with this home game.

VCU gets the win this time (-4.5, 134 o/u).