The Kentucky Wildcats (7-13 overall, 6-7 SEC) visit the Tennessee Volunteers (15-5, 8-5) in a Saturday afternoon (1 p.m. ET) contest at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tenn. Below, we analyze the Kentucky-Tennessee college basketball odds and lines, with picks and predictions.
Tennessee is No. 20 in the Ferris Mowers Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports.
Kentucky at Tennessee: Odds, spread and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated at 7:30 a.m. ET.
- Money line: Kentucky +240 (bet $100 to win $240) | Tennessee -300 (bet $300 to win $100)
- Against the spread/ATS: Kentucky +6.5 (-105) | Tennessee -6.5 (-115)
- Over/Under: 134.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
Kentucky at Tennessee: Three things to know
- The Wildcats won at Vanderbilt Wednesday and have won back-to-back games for the first time since early January. A ball-hawking UK defense forced 14 turnovers against the Commodores and has forced 30 over its last two games.
- The Volunteers defeated the Wildcats, 82-71, Feb. 6. Tennessee held Kentucky to a 38.5% mark from the field. The Vols rank as top-3 in the SEC in effective field-goal defense and in turnovers forced. They’ve allowed just 62.3 points per game, which ranks 16th in the nation.
- Tennessee heads into Saturday’s home game off a 93-73 win over South Carolina (Wednesday). The Vols’ 93 points marked their most in a game since Dec. 21. UT has tallied 80-plus points in three of its last four contests.
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Kentucky at Tennessee: Odds, lines, predictions and picks
Prediction
Tennessee 72, Kentucky 66
Money line (ML)
TENNESSEE -300 IS A SOLID VALUE. The Volunteers are the better five across the board, holding an advantage in every facet of the game. UT would be a decent play up to -325 or so.
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Against the spread (ATS)
With the above noted, UT is on a slight downward trend line, and UK has been headed the other way of late. The Wildcats have had better handles on the basketball of late, and they’ve made the most of the extra looks with better shooting.
Kentucky has habit of staying close in games; Tennessee has exhibited a pattern of not putting teams away. If the tag here reaches 7-1/2, consider middling this one: taking Tennessee on the ML and Kentucky (+6.5, -105) ATS.
Over/Under (O/U)
This category calls for a PASS but a lean on the Over. Both teams have played to some wild O/U margins in recent weeks. The total here just may not fully reflect some UK improvements on the offensive side of the ball.
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