Kentucky Wildcats vs Tennessee Volunteers Prediction, 3/12/2022 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Kentucky Wildcats vs Tennessee Volunteers

Date: Saturday, March 12, 2022

Location: Amalie Arena in Tampa, FL

TV: ESPN

The Tennessee Volunteers (24-7) will try to beat the Kentucky Wildcats (26-6) at Amalie Arena on Saturday.

The Kentucky Wildcats faced off with Vanderbilt and earned the victory with a final of 77-71 in their last contest. Kentucky walked away from the game having earned a 49.2% FG percentage (30 out of 61) and knocked down 7 of their 15 shots from beyond the perimeter. From the free throw line, the Wildcats buried 10 of their 13 attempts for a rate of 76.9%. In terms of grabbing rebounds, they compiled 33 with 8 of them being of the offensive sort. They also recorded 21 assists in this matchup as well as forcing the opposition into 11 turnovers and earning 4 steals. With respect to defense, Kentucky let their opponent shoot 41.9% from the floor on 26 out of 62 shooting. Vanderbilt totaled 11 dimes and had 7 steals in this game. Furthermore, Vanderbilt pulled down 24 boards (8 offensive, 16 defensive), but didn't have a block. Vanderbilt finished shooting 80.0% at the free throw line by making 8 of their 10 attempts. They buried 11 out of their 28 shots from beyond the perimeter. In the matter of fouls, the Wildcats ended up finishing with 15 and Vanderbilt totaled 15 fouls.

Oscar Tshiebwe is one player who was a major contributor in this contest. He scored 12 points on 5 of 9 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 38 minutes played and grabbed 14 rebounds. He ended up shooting 55.6% from the field and also dished out 1 assist.

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Kentucky steps onto the court with a record of 26-6 on the season. They have an average of 80.0 pts per game (12th in the country) while going 48.9% from the floor. The Wildcats are connecting on 35.8% on shots beyond the perimeter (201 of 561) and 73.0% from the free throw line. As a team, Kentucky is pulling in 40.2 boards per contest and is sitting with 523 assists for the campaign, which has them ranked 15th in college hoops in terms of passing the rock. They are giving up possession 11.6 times per contest and as a squad they are committing 14.1 personal fouls per game.

On the defensive end, the Wildcats are forcing 12.1 turnovers per game and they draw 15.7 fouls. They surrender 30.2% on shots from beyond the perimeter and they rank 80th in D-1 in PPG allowed (65.9). The Wildcats are giving up a shooting percentage of 41.1% (783 of 1,907) and they concede 30.0 rebounds per game as a basketball team. They are 108th in college basketball in giving up assists with 362 relinquished on the season.

For their last game, the Tennessee Volunteers went home victorious with a score of 72-59 against Mississippi State. The Volunteers collected 19 defensive boards and 6 offensive rebounds totaling 25 in the game. They also gave up possession of the ball 6 times, while recording 8 steals in the matchup. Mississippi State committed 15 personal fouls for the game which got the Volunteers to the charity stripe for a total of 10 attempts. They were able to knock down 6 of the free throw attempts for a percentage of 60.0%. When it comes to shooting from beyond the arc, Tennessee converted 8 of their 19 attempts (42.1%). When the final whistle blew, the Volunteers shot 29 out of 58 from the floor which gave them a percentage of 50.0%. The Volunteers allowed Mississippi State to convert 19 of their 48 tries from the floor which left them shooting 39.6% in this game. They finished 35.3% from 3-point land by going 6 out of 17 and ended up going 15 of 19 at the free throw line (78.9%). In relation to how they cleaned up the glass, Tennessee permitted Mississippi State to pull down 32 in total (8 on the offensive glass).

Josiah-Jordan James was important for the Volunteers in this matchup. He knocked down 6 out of 11 in the matchup for a rate of 54.5%, and accounted for 5 rebounds. He accumulated 16 points in his 30 mins on the court and tallied 4 dimes in this game.

Tennessee has a win-loss record of 24-7 this season. The Volunteers are committing 16.9 fouls per game and they go 71.5% from the free throw line. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 16.2 times per contest (16th in the country) and they turn the ball over 12.4 times per game. Tennessee has scored 2,281 points so far this year (73.6 per game) and they pull down 37.0 boards per contest. When it comes to offense, the Volunteers are shooting 43.1% from the field, which is ranked 238th in the nation.

The Tennessee defense gives up 32.1% on three-point shots (216 of 673) and opponents are connecting on 70.2% of their shots from the free throw line. They give up 11.5 assists and 33.6 rebounds per game, which is ranked 98th and 127th in college hoops. The Volunteers defensively are ranked 29th in college basketball in PPG given up with 63.2. They are forcing 16.2 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 40.5% from the floor (39th in college hoops).

Who will win tonight's NCAA basketball game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Kentucky

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