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ACC Tournament: UNC basketball vs. Virginia Tech live stream, odds, channel, prediction

By Mike Phillips

GREENSBORO, NORTH CAROLINA - MARCH 10: R.J. Davis #4 and Anthony Harris #0 of the North Carolina Tar Heels react following a dunk by Davis during the second half of their second round game against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the ACC Men's Basketball Tournament at Greensboro Coliseum on March 10, 2021 in Greensboro, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
GREENSBORO, NORTH CAROLINA - MARCH 10: R.J. Davis #4 and Anthony Harris #0 of the North Carolina Tar Heels react following a dunk by Davis during the second half of their second round game against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the ACC Men's Basketball Tournament at Greensboro Coliseum on March 10, 2021 in Greensboro, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) /
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UNC basketball can advance to the ACC Tournament semifinals by topping Virginia Tech.

The ACC Tournament has offered opportunities for teams on the bubble to shore up their resumes and North Carolina has taken advantage. The Tar Heels avoided a bad loss in their first game last night, easily topping Notre Dame 101-59 to advance to the quarterfinals.

Forward Armando Bacot played a big role for North Carolina in the win, scoring 20 points and grabbing 13 rebounds to help the Tar Heels cruise to victory. The win all but assured North Carolina of representing the ACC in the NCAA Tournament, making tonight’s game against Virginia Tech all about improving their resume.

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The contest is also fascinating for the Hokies, who have played exactly two games since Feb. 6 due to COVID issues within their program. Virginia Tech has proven that they are a quality team throughout the season with wins over Villanova and Virginia highlighting their resume, but the Hokies could be vulnerable after a lengthy layoff.

We have seen the effect that COVID pauses have on teams, which usually come back sluggish after having so much time away from the court. If Virginia Tech is shaky in a win-or-go-home situation it could provide an opportunity for the Tar Heels to steal this game.

These teams did not meet during the regular season since Virginia Tech’s scheduled trip to North Carolina was postponed due to the first COVID pause the Hokies dealt with in February. The winner of this game will take on Florida State tomorrow, which advanced by default after Duke withdrew from the ACC Tournament after a positive COVID test this morning.

How to bet and watch North Carolina vs. Virginia Tech

    • Date: Thursday, March 11
    • Time: 9:00 p.m. ET
    • Location: Greensboro, NC
    • Venue: Greensboro Coliseum
    • TV: ESPN
    • Live Stream: WatchESPN
    • Line: North Carolina -3.5 (FanDuel)
    • Prediction: North Carolina 72, Virginia Tech 64

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