Pittsburgh Panthers (9-10) vs Wake Forest Demon Deacons (6-13)
Game Info: Tuesday, March 2, 2021 at 6:00 pm (Petersen Events Center)
Betting Odds: Pittsburgh Panthers -7 -- Over/Under: 138.5 Click Here for the Latest Odds
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The Wake Forest Demon Deacons will travel to the Petersen Events Center to take on the Pittsburgh Panthers this Tuesday night in College Basketball action.
The Wake Forest Demon Deacons lost their 5th straight game and dropped to 6-13 on the season after being defeated by the 16th ranked Virginia Tech Hokies, 84-46, this past Saturday. Wake Forest was dominated on both ends of the court by Virginia Tech and could not fight back after going into halftime trailing by a 49-22 margin. Wake Forest shot 27.3% from the field and 31.3% from beyond the arc while Virginia Tech shot 53.4% from the field and 54.2% from beyond the arc. Wake Forest was outrebounded by Virginia Tech by a 39-34 margin and lost the turnover battle by a 18-9 margin in the loss. Leading the way for the Demon Deacons was Jonah Antonio who had 12 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, & 1 block.
On the season, Wake Forest is averaging 66.4 ppg on 41.2% shooting from the field. The Demon Deacons are averaging 8.7 three-pointers per game on 34.2% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Wake Forest has been led by Daivien Williamson (12.2 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 2.6 apg), Ian DuBose (11.1 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 2.4 apg, 1.3 spg), Isaiah Mucius (10.1 ppg, 5.1 rpg), & Ody Oguama (8.2 ppg, 5.5 rpg).
Defensively, Wake Forest is allowing their opponents to average 71.5 ppg on 46.2% shooting from the field. The Demon Deacons have a rebound margin of -1.0 and a turnover margin of -1.7.
The Pittsburgh Panthers lost their 5th straight game and dropped to 9-10 on the season after being defeated by the NC State Wolfpack, 65-62, this past Sunday. Pittsburgh struggled offensively against NC State and could not fight all the way back after the Wolfpack took a 62-56 lead with :54 seconds left in regulation. Pittsburgh shot 34.5% from the field and 27.3% from beyond the arc while NC State shot 39.1% from the field and 29.4% from beyond the arc. Pittsburgh outrebounded NC State by a 44-30 margin, however, lost the turnover battle by a 15-9 margin in the loss. Leading the way for the Panthers was Femi Odukale who had 18 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, & 1 steal.
On the season, Pittsburgh is averaging 72.2 ppg on 43.2% shooting from the field. The Panthers are averaging 6.4 three-pointers per game on 32.4% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Pittsburgh has been led by Justin Champagnie (18.6 ppg, 11.4 rpg, 1.6 apg, 1.2 spg, 1.1 bpg), Ithiel Horton (9.2 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 1.6 apg), Femi Odukale (5.5 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 2.2 apg), & Abdou Karim Coulibaly (5.2 ppg, 4.0 rpg). Two of Pittsburgh’s main weapons in Au’diese Toney (14.4 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 2.3 apg) & Xavier Johnson (14.2 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 5.7 apg) decided last week that they would be transferring out of Pittsburgh.
Defensively, Pittsburgh is allowing their opponents to average 70.3 ppg on 43.4% shooting from the field. The Panthers have a rebound margin of 4.5 and a turnover margin of 0.3.
The Demon Deacons are 6-2 ATS in their last 8 road games, however, are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 games overall. The Panthers are 7-3 ATS in their last 10 Tuesday games and 9-4 ATS in their last 13 games overall.
Pittsburgh has been competitive this season despite having a losing record, and despite the crushing blow of losing two of their best players last week in Au’Diese Toney & Xavier Johnson, you must be impressed by how the Panthers played against a good NC State team on the road this past weekend. Wake Forest has been in shambles since their OT loss at Florida State as over their last four games (Duke, NC State, Clemson, Virginia Tech), the Demon Deacons have lost by an average of 25.3 ppg. It is hard to trust the Pittsburgh offense without two of their three top scorers, however, as I think Wake Forest and their 277th ranked scoring offense will struggle on the road and for the fact that Pittsburgh will have the best player on the court in Justin Champagnie, I am taking Pittsburgh to cover this home spread. Good Luck!
Brett’s Pick Pittsburgh Panthers -7
AUTHOR: Brett Nault
Follow Brett Nault on Twitter @BrettCU05