The Daytona 500 was recently staged in the south, so maybe we can call this the Dixie 500, or Southern 500. Tuscaloosa 500? Whatever will fly, because these two teams will fly from start to finish.
Tennessee is top 25 in average possession length, at 15.8 seconds. Bama just happens to be third, at 14.5 seconds. These are two willing participants to keeping it in fifth gear both ways, full bore, start to finish.
Alabama games are 21-7 to OVER, tied with Wright State behind national-leading Denver 19-6-1. Of the Vols’ past 15 games, nine have finished OVER their totals.
This one will offer points galore.
Tennessee (22-6 SU, 14-13-1 ATS) vs. Alabama (20-8, 17-11) tips off at 8 p.m. Saturday on ESPN.
Tennessee vs. Alabama betting line: Point spread, moneyline, total
Here are the latest college basketball betting odds for Saturday night’s game from the best US sportsbook apps:
Tennessee basketball betting news and analysis
The Volunteers are led by 6-foot-6 swingman Dalton Knecht, the product of Thornton, Colo., who played two seasons at Northern Colorado and sought more of a challenge this past summer.
In particular, he was seeking a coach who would demand an abundance from him, push him to limits he never previously knew and hold him to sky-high accountability, so he picked Rick Barnes.
Plenty has been written about Barnes’s 3-15 record against the spread in his NCAA Tournament history, at Clemson, Texas and, for a ninth campaign, at Tennessee.
However, he hasn’t had a talent like Knecht maybe ever. The other night, Knecht took it strong to the hoop for a two-handed jam, popped from 25 and 26 feet with the greatest of ease, and was an ace at the line.
It was a magnificent 39-point outburst in a home victory over Auburn, tying a season-high for Knecht, who also pasted 39 on Florida.
He went for 37 at North Carolina, 36 against Georgia, 32 at Vandy and 31 at home vs. South Carolina.
Knecht has moved up to No. 5 (at 1.512) in stats guru Ken Pomeroy’s player-of-the-year ratings, and he’s 17th in the nation averaging 20.8 points. He sinks 41.4% of his 3-pointers, 52.4% inside the arc and 76.5% of his freebies.
Zakai Zeigler, a 5-9 junior point guard, hits 32.7% from long range, and 6-3 senior Santiago Vescovi (35.5%), senior forward Josiah-Jordan James (32.7%) and junior guard Jordan Gainey (32 3-pointers) assist with the aerial attack.
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Alabama basketball betting news and analysis
We could spend the entire Tide write-up detailing how much of a scoring machine it’s been this season, so let’s get to it.
The season began with triumphs by scores of 105-73, 102-80 and 102-46, portents that signified the race would be on in 2023-24, and Bama knows nothing but sprinting.
It followed that trio by tallying 98 points, then 91, 77 and 89, but it was just getting its sea legs prepped for the campaign.
Three consecutive losses — to Purdue at a neutral venue, Creighton in a true away and Arizona in a semi-away in Phoenix — were splendid learning games. Win or lose, points had to be learned to prep the Tide for late March.
And it shifted right back into the fast lane with big wins, 111-67 over Eastern Kentucky and 101-56 over Liberty. They haven’t dropped consecutive games in the new year and have lost only three times, including one at Tennessee on Jan. 20.
Alabama beat LSU, 109-88; defeated Mississippi State, 99-67; lost at Auburn, 99-81; trounced LSU (109-92) and Texas A&M (100-75), zapped Florida in overtime, 98-93; got beat in Kentucky, 117-95, and belted Old Miss 103-88.
Alabama runs better, faster and more efficient maybe than the bottom-feeders of the NBA. And, at home, it’s nailing 3-pointers at a 41.4% clip, tied with Dayton for 15th in the country.
Mark Sears is the senior guard from Muscle Shoals, Ala., who has experienced only one blip, a 9-point outing in a 93-75 home victory over Missouri, all season.
The rest of his efforts have all been for double-digit points, and he’s been in a sweet groove ever since that anomaly against Missouri.
In those 11 games, he has tallied fewer than 20 points only once, averaging 22.1 per game. He has gone to the line 78 times in those tilts, nailing 70 for an expert 89.7-percent touch.
Over his past 10, he has 50 assists and 28 turnovers, and he’s yanked down 51 rebounds. And in his previous three games, Sears has logged 118 minutes. If not for Knecht, Sears might be the lock for MVP of the SEC.
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Tennessee vs. Alabama prediction
The Tide leads Division-I with a 91.5-point scoring average, which is 95.4 and also No. 1 at home. And over its past three, that’s 98.7 points. Tennessee, away from home, averages a top-30 78.4 points. And in their previous three, the Vols have averaged 83.3 points.
Pick: OVER
