NCAA Basketball Matchup: Kentucky vs. Tennessee
It’s tough to find a team that can match Kentucky’s athleticism. John Calipari has once again brought in an amazing crop of youngsters.
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College Basketball Gambling Odds from BetOnline
NCAA Basketball Betting Favorite: Kentucky -10
Over/Under: 136
This might be Coach Cal’s single best chance of winning it all yet. Tennessee has had an up and down season thus far. Cuonzo Martin is a great guy for the job, but it is just going to take this team some time to get back near the top. Can the Volunteers pull of a big upset at home or will the Wildcats roll?
How deep and talented is this Kentucky team? The Wildcats have six players that average at least ten points per contest. Freshman Anthony Davis has made a big name for himself already this season. Davis is averaging 12.8 points and 10.3 boards per game. He is also one of the best shot blockers the college game has seen in many years. Davis already has 76 blocks this year, and he alters a ton of shots in the paint. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Doron Lamb and Terrance Jones are basically the “veterans” of this team as sophomores. Both of them shoot the ball extremely well from the outside. Kentucky is a strong offensive team, but most impressive is the fact that they are second in the nation in field goal percentage defense.
Tennessee isn’t nearly as deep of a team as they were a couple years ago. Bruce Pearl hurt this program quite a bit last year, and now it is up to Martin to get the team back on the right path. Trae Golden and Cameron Tatum form a nice backcourt for the Volunteers. Both of them can fill it up from beyond the arc. Jeronne Maymon is a solid player on the inside, but he will have his hands full in this matchup. The biggest problem Tennessee has had this year has been their weakness on the defensive end. The Volunteers rank in the lower half in all the major team defensive categories.
I think the pace will be quick enough to see this one get over the posted total. Kentucky should win, but I expect a valiant effort from Tennessee.
Prediction: Kentucky 74 Tennessee 66
