The Vanderbilt Commodores (4-5 overall, 0-3 SEC) make the short trip east to take on the Tennessee Volunteers (9-1, 3-1) in a Saturday evening (6 p.m. ET) tussle at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tenn. Below, we analyze the Vanderbilt-Tennessee college basketball betting odds and lines, with picks and predictions.
Tennessee is No. 10 in the Ferris Mowers Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports.
Vanderbilt at Tennessee: Betting odds, spread and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated at 11:50 a.m. ET.
- Money line: Vanderbilt +1450 (bet $100 to win $1,450) | Tennessee -5000 (bet $5,000 to win $100)
- Against the spread/ATS: Vanderbilt +18.5 (-110) | Tennessee -18.5 (-110)
- Over/Under: 137.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
Vanderbilt at Tennessee: Three things to know
- Vanderbilt is 0-3 over its last three games and heads into Saturday’s game off a six-day layoff (as does UT). Vandy and Tennessee were supposed to have played Tuesday in Nashville, but that contest was postponed Monday after a COVID-19 contact-tracing issue within the Vanderbilt program.
- Tennessee’s defense (56.8 points per game) ranks third in the nation. The Volunteers head into this game after holding Texas A&M to a 34.0% mark from the field last Saturday. And field-goal accuracy is a big point of leverage in this game against Vandy. The Commodores’ 42.9% mark on offense ranks 236th in NCAA-I; the Vols’ 38.4% mark on defense ranks 19th.
- Vandy’s last against-the-spread loss at UT was on March 1, 2014. The Commodores have since gone 3-3 straight-up and 6-0 ATS in Knoxville. The last three seasons have produced Tennessee SU home wins by an average margin of 7.0 points.
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Vanderbilt at Tennessee: Odds, betting lines, predictions and picks
Prediction
Tennessee 75, Vanderbilt 59
Money line (ML)
STEET CLEAR of the ultra-juicy straight-up odds.
Against the spread (ATS)
Peg this contest as a low-tempo affair. It’s a conference battle, and 18.5 points is a lot in a relatively low-scoring game, even with the talent disparity between these two teams.
Two losses in the Vandy streak are by three points; recent UT wins have underlying game flows that make for a slight-fade-the-Vols lean. The recency biases on both sides are thrown into a rivalry setting, and that gives the Commodores a fighting chance … of staying within 15 points.
TAKE VANDERBILT +18.5 (-110).
Over/Under (O/U)
The Under is 4-1 in the Vols’ last five games as a favorite. Vandy’s defense has gone sideways in SEC play, but the Commodores have been undone by a couple of big shooting performances.
Tag the UNDER 137.5 (-110) AS HAVING SOME MODERATE VALUE.
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