Cats and Vols in Must Win Game
The Tennessee Volunteers and the Kentucky Wildcats are both in must win situations on Tuesday when they battle at Rupp Arena. Tennessee needs a key win to build a case for an NCAA Tournament bid. Kentucky has to win to keep pace for the SEC regular season championship. They are in a 3-way tie with South Carolina and Florida atop the SEC. Tennessee defeated Kentucky 82-80 in Knoxville on January 24th, handing the Wildcats their first loss in Southeastern Conference play. Vols coach Rick Barnes knows it will be a much different story tonight in Lexington. Oddsmakers opened the Wildcats as -13-point favorites versus the Volunteers, while the game’s total opened at 159.5. Kentucky was a 67-58 winner in its last match on the road against the Alabama Crimson Tide. They covered the -7.5-point spread as favorites. No. 13 Kentucky is trying to find its way. The Tennessee loss sent the Wildcats into a skid in which they lost three of the next four games. Kentucky is 3-3 since that loss. In two of those victories they have blown 20-point leads in the final eight minutes. Tennessee lost its last outing, a 76-75 result against Georgia Bulldogs on February 11. They failed to cover in that game as a -4.5-point favorite. Tennessee may still be reeling from Saturday’s 76-75 loss to Georgia. They blew a 14-point lead late in the game. It’s been a terrible trend as the Volunteers held leads of 19, 15, 13 and 13 only to lose to Mississippi State, North Carolina, Arkansas and Ole Miss, respectively.Betting Odds Trends
| Tennessee Volunteers | ||
|---|---|---|
| Tennessee is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games | ||
| Tennessee is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games | ||
| The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Tennessee’s last 6 games | ||
| Tennessee is 8-3 ATS in its last 11 games on the road | ||
| Tennessee is 7-18 SU in its last 25 games on the road | ||
| The total has gone UNDER in 14 of Tennessee’s last 21 games on the road | ||
| Tennessee is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games when playing Kentucky | ||
| Tennessee is 3-9 SU in its last 12 games when playing Kentucky | ||
| The total has gone UNDER in 10 of Tennessee’s last 15 games when playing Kentucky | ||
| Tennessee is 2-8 ATS in its last 10 games when playing on the road against Kentucky | ||
| Tennessee is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Kentucky | ||
| The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Tennessee’s last 11 games when playing on the road against Kentucky | ||
Kentucky Wildcats |
||
|---|---|---|
| Kentucky is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games | ||
| Kentucky is 20-5 SU in its last 25 games | ||
| The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Kentucky’s last 6 games | ||
| Kentucky is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games at home | ||
| Kentucky is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games at home | ||
| The total has gone OVER in 8 of Kentucky’s last 12 games at home | ||
| Kentucky is 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games when playing Tennessee | ||
| Kentucky is 9-3 SU in its last 12 games when playing Tennessee | ||
| The total has gone UNDER in 10 of Kentucky’s last 15 games when playing Tennessee | ||
| Kentucky is 8-2 ATS in its last 10 games when playing at home against Tennessee | ||
| Kentucky is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Tennessee | ||
| The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Kentucky’s last 11 games when playing at home against Tennessee | ||