Davidson vs VCU Odds and Pick (Jan. 18)

• The VCU Rams are 2.5-point home favorites over the Davidson Wildcats in an NCAA men’s basketball game scheduled for Tuesday, January 18
• This game was originally slated for Jan. 2 but was postponed due to COVID-19
• Davidson is 1-5 straight up in the school’s last six trips to VCU

The Davidson Wildcats arrive to face the VCU Rams owning a share of the title of the hottest team in NCAA basketball. Davidson has won 13 games in a row. That’s tied with the Auburn Tigers for the longest current unbeaten streak in the nation.

VCU was also rolling. The Rams had won seven in a row. However, the St  Bonaventure Bonnies brought a halt to that run of good fortune. The Bonnies dumped the Rams 73-53.

Nonetheless, it’s VCU that is being set as 2.5-point home favorites to win when these two schools clash on Tuesday. Davidson is 2-1 against the spread as a betting underdog this season.

Davidson vs VCU Odds

Odds as of January 17th at FanDuel Sportsbook.

Tip-off for Tuesday’s game is set for 7:00pm ET at the Stuart C Siegel Center. The broadcast is being carried by the CBS Sports Network.

At -140 in the moneyline, the Rams are given a 58.33% implied probability of winning. Davidson, as a +116 underdog, is showing an IP of 46.30.

Neither team is considered a contender in the NCAA Tournament odds. Davidson currently sports +8000 odds to make the Final Four, while VCU is a longer shot at +9500.

Rams Like to Press the Issue

Even though they’ve kept their winning streak intact, the Wildcats are 1-2 ATS in their last three games. Prior to that stretch, Davidson was 10-0 both straight up and ATS in the previous 10 games. The Wildcats have gone over the total in four of the past five games.

VCU has gone over in two of the past three games. Rams Like To Press The Issue

VCU (10-5, 3-1) is known for its smothering full-court press. VCU has finished 33rd or better in turnover percentage in nine of the past 10 seasons. The Rams have forced 15 or more turnovers in 32 of 41 games since the start of last season.

The Rams’ defense ranks third nationally in effective field goal percentage (.418), fourth in turnover percentage (26.2) and third in defensive efficiency (87.8). VCU is also second in the country in 3-point defense (.250).

𝙍𝘼𝙈 𝙉𝘼𝙏𝙄𝙊𝙉.

Big A-10 matchup tomorrow vs Davidson. Let’s pack the Stu 🐏◼️🔶

Student 🎟 https://t.co/y62Usq9I5Z
Public 🎟 https://t.co/wsf2W7LQoM#ThisIsRamNation #LetsGoVCU pic.twitter.com/WUEQnAEgVL

— VCU Basketball (@VCU_Hoops) January 18, 2022

The Rams held Vanderbilt to 37 points earlier this season. VCU is allowing 58.1 points per game. Opponents are shooting .375.

Only six of 16 opponents have managed to score 60 points against the Rams this season. Facing #6 Baylor, #22 Connecticut and Syracuse earlier this season in the Battle 4 Atlantis, VCU held those three teams to .341 (61-of-179) shooting, including .274 (17-of-62) from 3-point range.

Wildcats Roll Onward

Davidson (14-2, 4-0) are off to the school’s best start since 1969-70. Davidson’s starting lineup is shooting 52% (384-of-738) from the floor and 44.9% (146-of-325) from 3-point range.

Junior guard/forward Hyunjung Lee, a preseason all-conference selection, leads Davidson in scoring with 17.5 points per game. Fellow starters junior guard Foster Loyer (16.0), redshirt junior guard Michael Jones (13.3) and senior forward Luka Brajkovic (13.2) are also averaging double digits in scoring.

𝗡𝘂𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟭𝟯 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝟭𝟯 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁❗️ pic.twitter.com/mTAQPdsBMe

— Davidson Basketball (@DavidsonMBB) January 15, 2022

Loyer is 11th nationally in 3-point field-goal percentage, shooting 47.3 percent (45-of-95). He’s also 13th in the NCAA in free-throw percentage (.911) and tied for 14th in assist/turnover ratio (3.00). Brajkovic is the current Atlantic 10 player of the week.

The Wildcats rank among the nation’s top-25 teams in field-goal percentage (.501/6th), 3-point field-goal percentage (.419/2nd), 3-pointers made per game (10.1/16th), assists/turnover ratio (1.67/5th), assists per game (16.6/25th) and fewest turnovers per game (9.9/14th).

Davidson vs VCU Prediction

During the Wildcats’ current streak, they’re outscoring the opposition by +14.2 points, while holding opponents to 41.7% from the floor. Offensively, Davidson is shooting 50.% from the floor, 41.4% from beyond the arc and just under 80% from the free-throw line.

That’s ✌️@A10MBB Player of the Weeks for Luka Brajkovic this season!
 
🏀 – 19.0 ppg | 11.0 rpg
🏀 – 2.5 apg | 1.5 bpg
🏀 – .727 FG% | .600 3FG%
🏀 – 2 Double-Doubles

Story ⤵️https://t.co/eU7PrxznJt pic.twitter.com/4Z0BweYSi4

— Davidson Basketball (@DavidsonMBB) January 17, 2022

VCU is a different team since getting sophomore guard Ace Baldwin Jr back from Achilles surgery. He’s averaging 10.8 points, 5.2 assists and 2.7 steals in six games since his return. As a team, VCU is shooting .458 and averaging 68.9 points per game with Baldwin in the lineup. In the eight games without him, the Rams averaged 57.4 and shot .406.

Both VCU (12-5) and Davidson (10-5) are proving to be solid ATS plays this season. This game comes down to a battle of Davidson’s explosive offense and VCU’s stout defense. Unfortunately for the Virginia sports betting public, the hot hand of Davidson is the pick.

Pick: Davidson Wildcats +2.5 (-110)