Tobacco Road Report

Our second preview of ACC teams in the NCAA Ttournament.

Records and Statistics:
Virginia (20-10, 11-5)
EFG%: 50.6%
Points/Possession: 1.07
Points Allowed/Possession: 0.98
High Scorer: Sean Singletary 19.3 ppg.
Rebounds: Jason Cain 6.6 rpg
Key Victories:
Arizona, Maryland, Virginia Tech, Duke
Common Opponents:
None
Albany (23-9, 13-3)
EFG%: 52%
Points/Possession: 1.04
Points Allowed/Possession: 0.98
High Scorer: Jamar Wilson 18.6 ppg.
Rebounds: Jamar Wilson 6.3 rpg
Key Victories:
None
Common Opponents:
None
Last 10 Games:
Virginia (6-4)
Albany (8-2)
Analysis:
Albany is an experienced team that goes 8 deep. The starters are 2 seniors and 3 juniors. The problem facing Albany will be a comparison of strengths against Virginia. Albany’s tallest player is 6-8, so they will not be able to exploit Virginia’s weakness. This is the second straight NCAA appearance for the Great Danes under Coach Will Brown. The Danes won the America East conference tournament with a win over Vermont. Point guard Jamar Wilson is the scoring leader on a team that plays slightly slower than ACC competition.
Keys and Our Pick:
This game isn’t too hard for the TRR staff to pick. Albany has made a nice run to close the season, but this game is strength against strength. To beat Virginia, you have to take advantage in the paint. Albany is a guard oriented team that will run into the nation’s best duo in Singletary and Reynolds. Wilson versus Singletary will be the key matchup, but Virginia has too many other contributing pieces to feel threatened. We like Uva to win here before facing a difficult Tennessee team in round two.