Virginia tries to bounce back; college football picks

No. 25 Virginia vs. Davidson in Charlotte, Noon

Note: If you haven't, vote in my poll on the right side of the page and let me know how many wins you think the Virginia men's basketball team will finish with this season.

After a tough loss at home to VCU, the UVa men's basketball team tries to bounce back Saturday playing Davidson in Charlotte on a neutral court at Time Warner Cable Arena, home of the NBA's Bobcats.

VCU ended the game Tuesday on a 10-1 run to steal one from the 'Hoos on their home floor. Virginia played pretty tough defense all game but the offense was pretty poor and the free throw shooting -- while better percentage-wise than the Rams -- was also bad.

The Wildcats are 0-2 this season with a loss at No. 4 Duke in their first game, 111-77. In their second game, the Wildcats lost to  Milwaukee, 81-77, at home. Obviously, the Blue Devils in Cameron Indoo

r Stadium is a tough draw for anyone so it is hard to tell from that game how good or bad Davidson is. Milwaukee was just 8-24 last year (2-1 this season), so that makes it seem like Davidson could be bad this season.

Still, Davidson is normally one of the better mid-major programs in the country and are well known for Stephen Curry, the now NBA guard that first led the Wildcats into the national spotlight a few years ago. They were picked second in the Southern Conference this season and last year, they made the NCAA tournament and were very close to upsetting Marquette in the first round but lost, 59-58. They are led by two seniors, forward De'Mon Brooks (19 points per game) and Tom Droney (19 ppg). Brooks is the preseason player of the year in the Southern Conference. Brian Sullivan, a sophomore guard, is the only other Wildcat averaging in double figures at 14.5 ppg. It is early, but the Wildcats' main problem might be defense, as they gave up 111 points to Duke and over 80 to Milwaukee. For Virginia, which has scored just 61 and 56 points so far, that could be helpful.

Virginia needs to be ready for this game and hopefully the players have shaken off the disappointment of the close loss to the Rams. Davidson will be ready to go for its first win of the season. If the Cavaliers come out sluggish as they often have on neutral courts (anyone remember ODU last year?), they will lose.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

College football picks

No Virginia game this week. Perhaps that is for the better. Basketball season has started so I have a new stress to deal with as a UVa fan. I went 5-1 last week in picks and am now 59-17 on the season.

N.C. State at Boston College, 12:30 p.m. CSN

The Wolfpack are 3-6, have lost five in a row, and now must win their last three games vs. the Eagles, East Carolina, and Maryland to go bowling. Host BC needs just one more victory to go bowling in coach Steve Addazio's first season at the helm. After blowout losses against Clemson and UNC, BC has turned it around the past two weeks by beating Virginia Tech and, last week, a terrible New Mexico State team. A win is a win, however, and I think BC gets another one Saturday to get that sixth win.

Boston College 24, N.C. State 13

North Carolina at Pittsburgh, 12:30 p.m. ESPN3.com

Probably one of the better games Saturday in the ACC. UNC has won three straight and needs to win two of its final three to go bowling. The Tar Heels face Old Dominion and Duke, both at home, after facing Pitt. The Panthers got a big win last week over Notre Dame to get to five wins. Their road to six wins if they don't top the Tar Heels? They would need to beat Syracuse on the road or Miami at home. Playing a tough team on the road, I think Pitt wins this one in a tightly contested game, but I still think UNC will beat ODU and Duke to get to six wins.

Pittsburgh 28, North Carolina 24

Maryland at Virginia Tech, 12:30 p.m. NBC29

The Hokies played their best game of the year last week, blowing out Miami on the road, 42-24. I don't think they will have a problem topping the sliding Terrapins , losers of three straight and four of five, in Blacksburg.

Virginia Tech 31, Maryland 10

No. 25 Georgia at No. 7 Auburn, 3:30 p.m. CBS
Auburn is rolling this year under head coach Gus Malzahn, the architect of the offense that Cam Newton quarterbacked to a national title after the 2010 season. I think the Tigers go into the Iron Bowl vs. Alabama in a few weeks with just their one loss to LSU. The Tigers' rushing offense is very good and the Bulldogs have had major problems on defense this year.

Auburn 45, Georgia 31

No. 12 Oklahoma State at No. 24 Texas, 3:30 p.m. FOX

The Cowboys have only tripped up against West Virginia this season and Texas lost two games back-to-back early in the season to BYU and Ole Miss that had Longhorn fans calling for Mack Brown's head. Both teams are playing better now, though, but I like OSU more. Should be a fairly high-scoring contest.

Oklahoma State 38, Texas 28

No. 16 Michigan State at Nebraska, 3:30 p.m. ABC

Big game in Lincoln because the winner has the inside track to the Big Ten championship game. Both of these squads are in the Legends Division. The Spartans have zero Big Ten losses while the Cornhuskers have one. Nebraska is playing better defense this season than last and I think at home, they get a huge win vs. MSU, which has a pretty weak offense but a very stout defense.

Nebraska 23, Michigan State 20

No. 23 Miami at Duke, 3:30 p.m. ESPNU

The Hurricanes are in a freefall, with back-to-back losses to Florida State and Virginia Tech. Duke, meanwhile, has won five in a row. This matchup is to keep pace with the Hokies in the Coastal Division. Duke has a tiebreaker over them since they beat them in Blacksburg a couple weeks ago. Miami does not, however. I think the division is set up for the Hokies to win. The schedule has been fairly easy for Duke lately, whose toughest game was against a Tech team that could not stop falling over itself. I think the Blue Devils fall back to earth a little against the Hurricanes and lose in a shootout. Virginia Tech will beat Maryland and then Virginia on Nov. 30 to win the division by virtue of having the tiebreaker over Miami.

Miami 34, Duke 30

No. 4 Stanford at USC, 8 p.m. ABC

This is a big game because Stanford and Oregon both have one loss in the Pac-12 and are fighting to represent the North Division in the conference championship game. The Cardinal dumped the Ducks last Thursday so they own the head-to-head tiebreaker. If Stanford wins this game, it will most likely go to the conference title bout (only a game against a terrible Cal team stands in its way next week). If USC wins, Oregon will go to the title game unless it trips up against Utah, Arizona, or Oregon State. Stanford has played great since losing to Utah, beating ranked teams UCLA, Oregon State, and Oregon. The Trojans have played well, also, since firing Lane Kiffin, defeating Arizona, Utah, Oregon State, and Cal. The Cardinal have proven they are the better team, though, with the opponents they have beaten.

Stanford 28, USC 21