Pittsburgh Panthers vs. West Virginia Mountaineers Picks, Predictions, Odds

VegasInsider Staff Sports Betting Expert

2 minute read

Nov. 12, 2021

David Schwab
VI Betting Expert
VegasInsider.com

In a renewal of an old Big East rivalry, the ACC’s Pittsburgh Panthers travel to Morgantown this Friday night to tangle with the Big 12’s West Virginia Mountaineers. Game time from WVU Coliseum is set for 8:30 p.m. (ET) on ESPNU.

Score Prediction

West Virginia 67, Pittsburgh 58

Best Bets

Under

Pittsburgh Panthers vs. West Virginia Mountaineers Predictions

The rivalry between Pitt and West Virginia runs deep going back to the days of the old Big East. In head-to-head competition, the series is tied 5-5 straight-up over the past 10 meetings with West Virginia holding the slight 6-4 edge against the spread.

The last time these two teams met was in 2019 with the Mountaineers coming away with a 68- 53 victory closing as 2.5-point favorites on the road. West Virginia has won the last four meetings SU with a 3-1 record ATS.

Anytime you have a bitter rivalry at play, there is some added value betting the underdog. However, the separation between these two rivals is rather wide heading into this season with a heavy lean towards the Mountaineers. Look for the Panthers to hang tough for a while but bet West Virginia to win and cover is looking at the spread.

Pittsburgh Panthers vs. West Virginia Mountaineers Betting Odds

More Odds | Futures Odds

Odds Provided by DraftKings - Subject to Change

• Pitt +550
• West Virginia -800
• Pitt +13.5 (-110)
• West Virginia -13.5 (-110)
• Over 137.5 (-110)
• Under 137.5 (-110)

Pittsburgh Panthers vs. West Virginia Mountaineers Betting Resources

• Matchup: ACC vs. Big 12
• Date: Friday, November 12, 2021
• Venue: WVU Coliseum
• Location: Morgantown, West Virginia
• TV-Time: ESPNU - 8:30 p.m. ET

• Injury Report
• Wooden Award Odds
• Conference Futures Market
• Power Rankings

Pittsburgh Panthers Betting Analysis

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

2020-21 Season Stats

• SU: 0-1
• ATS: 0-1
• O/U: 0-1

The Panthers’ season got off to a rough start with a stunning 78-63 loss to The Citadel as 10.5- point home favorites. The total in that season opener stayed UNDER the closing 155-point line. Pitt fell behind early in that game and it was never able to close the gap. The defense had no answer for Jason Roche, who converted on eight three-point shots for The Citadel to spark the upset.

It also did not help that the Panthers shot just 38.1% from the field while their opponents converted on 46% of their shots. Pitt went just 11.8% from three-point range. This could be attributed to a bad start or off night but turning things around against a Big 12 team on the road will be a tall task.

One lone bright spots from Tuesday’s loss was the play of sophomore forward John Hugley. He ended the game with 27 points and 10 rebounds while hitting 50% of his shots from the field. Pitt also got a solid effort from guard Femi Odukale with 20 points. The rest of the starting five combined to add 11 points to the Panthers’ scoring total.

West Virginia Mountaineers Betting Analysis

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

• SU: 1-0
• ATS: 0-1
• O/U: 0-1

West Virginia opened its season on Tuesday night with a 60-53 victory over Oakland but it came nowhere close to covering the hefty 17.5-point spread. The total stayed UNDER after closing at 151 points.

The Mountaineers carved out a four-point lead at the half. The game stayed too close to call for most of the second half. Neither team shot the ball well with Pitt hitting just 39.7% of its 58 shots from the field. This included a dreaded 4-for-21 effort from three-point range.

Guard Taz Sherman led all scorers with 18 points on a 7-for-19 shooting performance. He added four rebounds and a team-high five assists to the winning cause. The only other Panther in double figures was guard Sean McNeil with 11 points.

This was obviously not one of West Virginia’s better efforts but a win is a win this early in the season. The motivation to beat a fierce rival should be enough to spark a much more cohesive effort on Friday night.

West Virginia has won 13 of its last 14 home games when playing at night. (AP)

Inside the Stats - Pittsburgh Panthers

• Record: 0-1
• VI Ranking: 100
• PS/G: 63 (259th)
• PA/G: 78 (270th)
• ORtg: 92.6 (242nd)
• DRtg: 114.7 (298th)

Inside the Stats - West Virginia Mountaineers

• Record: 1-0
• VI Ranking: 36
• PS/G: 60 (280th)
• PA/G: 53 (42nd)
• ORtg: 85.7 (285th)
• DRtg: 75.7 (56th)

Key Players to Watch

• PITT: John Hugley - F (27 ppg, 10 rpg)
• PITT: Femi Odukale - G (20 ppg, 4 rpg, 4 apg)
• WVU: Taz Sherman - G (18 ppg, 4 rpg, 5 apg)
• WVU: Sean McNeil (11 ppg, 5 rpg, 4 apg)

Pittsburgh Panthers vs. West Virginia Mountaineers Betting Conclusion

Pitt did not look good at all in its season opener while West Virginia played well below its capabilities. Friday night’s matchup should paint a better picture as to which direction each team is headed this season.

The expectation level for the Panthers is already set low with long +10000 odds to win the ACC regular season title. Only Boston College (+20000) has longer odds.

The Panthers appear to be still suffering a hangover from last season’s 1-7 SU slide in their final eight games. They have lost their last five games on the road SU. West Virginia has been a tough bet at home lately after failing to cover in five of its last six contests at WVU Coliseum. While the total has stayed UNDER in seven of the last 10 meetings overall, it has gone OVER in four of the last five meetings in West Virginia.

The Mountaineers should win and cover will relative ease on Friday night. However, Pitt could keep things interesting into the second half.

Pittsburgh Panthers vs. West Virginia Mountaineers Betting Trends

• Pitt has lost the first half in eight of its last nine games.
• West Virginia has won 13 of its last 14 home games when playing at night.
• West Virginia has won four straight games when facing Pitt.
• West Virginia has won the first half in four straight games when facing Pitt.

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