Thompson-Boling Arena - Knoxville, TN
Tip-off: Monday, 7:00 p.m. ET
Line: Tennessee -2

Virginia will finish non-conference play on the road at Tennessee, which will look to improve to 2-1 this year against ACC teams.

The Volunteers are coming off an 82-67 win against Morehead State last Monday, snapping a two-game losing streak (to NC State and at Wichita State). Earlier in the year, they had beaten Wake Forest by 19 points and are 4-5-1 ATS this year, including 2-2-1 ATS at home. In the past two seasons, Tennessee is 11-2 ATS (85%) against good rebounding teams (4+ RPG margin), and the Vols rank fourth in the nation with 14.6 offensive rebounds per game. Virginia is off to a 9-3 start, with two of its losses coming to ranked opponents in VCU and Wisconsin. Tony Bennett’s squad is 3-5 ATS this season, and 0-1 ATS in its lone road game, a three-point loss at Green Bay. Virginia’s slow-paced style has it averaging only 65.8 PPG (306th in nation), but the team is holding opponents to 54.2 PPG, fourth fewest in the nation. The Cavaliers are also 26-12 ATS (68%) under Bennett after three straight non-conference games since he took over the program. When these two teams met in Charlottesville last year, Virginia grinded out a 46-38 victory, holding Tennessee to 15-of-52 FG.

Which top-10 team will remain unbeaten? For the latest college basketball picks, check out The Platinum Sheet for all the StatFox Experts selections every week throughout the entire 2013-14 season. The StatFox Experts have been rolling in college basketball Best Bets this season with a 63% ATS (117-68-5) mark, including an eye-popping 71% ATS (82-33) record over the past five weeks. StatFox Zach is leading the way at 68% ATS (25-12-1) on Best Bets this season, including 78% ATS (18-5) in the past five weeks, while StatFox Brian is 65% ATS (24-13-1) for the season and 74% ATS (17-6) in the past five weeks. StatFox Gary is 61% ATS (22-14-2) for the season and 78% ATS (14-4) in the past four weeks, while StatFox Scott is 63% ATS (24-14) for the season and 72% ATS (13-5) in the past four weeks. StatFox Dave is 60% ATS (22-15-1) for the season and 65% ATS (15-8) in the past five weeks.

SG Joe Harris and SF Akil Mitchell led Virginia past Tennessee last year with 13 points apiece on a combined 12-of-24 shooting, and also pulled down 18 combined boards. Harris (11.4 PPG, 4.1 RPG) is the team’s leading scorer again this season, though his offensive output is down from a year ago despite an improved shooting clip (51.1% FG). PG London Perrantes (3.9 PPG, 3.3 APG) runs the offense and is not much of a scorer, making a terrible 25.6% of his shots this year as a freshman, but he rarely turns it over and has a knack for finding a few assists every game. SG Malcolm Brogdon (10.3 PPG, 5.3 RPG) is the team’s second-leading scorer and leading rebounder at 6-foot-5, while he gets help on the glass from Mitchell (6.3 PPG, 5.2 RPG). Another guy to watch out for is 6-foot-6 sophomore SG Justin Anderson (9.2 PPG, 4.6 RPG), who is averaging 13.0 PPG over the team’s past five games.

The Volunteers shot a terrible 28.8% (3-of-19 threes) last season against Virginia’s stingy defense. This year’s leading scorer, senior SG Jordan McRae (18.7 PPG, 3.3 RPG), went just 2-of-6 from the field in 24 minutes, but did contribute four rebounds, three assists and two steals. Down low, PF Jarnell Stokes (13.6 PPG, 9.6 RPG) is averaging a near double-double, though he also struggled last year against the Cavaliers at 2-for-5 FG and 1-for-3 FT, but he did grab nine boards in 27 minutes. Stokes has some more help on the block now as 6-foot-8 sophomore wing Derek Reese played his first game of the year against Morehead State, scoring 12 points, grabbing 10 boards and blocking four shots. Alongside Stokes and 260-pound senior PF Jeronne Maymon (11.1 PPG, 8.5 RPG), the Volunteers now have serious length on the perimeter and down low. If they can control the offensive glass the way this team has been doing all season, they should be able to avenge last year’s loss and cover the small spread.