Tennessee vs Kentucky 1/14/23 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

The Kentucky Wildcats and the Tennessee Volunteers meet Saturday in college basketball action from Thompson-Boling Arena. Kentucky is currently 10-6 this year. The Wildcats lost to South Carolina in their last game. As for Tennessee, they’re 14-2 overall following a win over Vanderbilt on Tuesday. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.

Kentucky was 8-4 through 12 games this year, losing to Michigan State, Gonzaga, UCLA and Missouri. Over their last four games the Wildcats are 2-2 with wins over Louisville and LSU before losses to Alabama and South Carolina. 

In the South Carolina matchup on Tuesday, the Wildcats trailed 42-32 going into the second half. Kentucky posted a 36-29 edge from there but still lost 71-68. Oscar Tshiebwe led the team on a double-double with 19 points and 12 rebounds. 

Over on the Tennessee side, they were 10-2 after a dozen games with losses to only Colorado and Arizona. The Volunteers have won five straight over Austin Peay, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, South Carolina and Vanderbilt. 

Matched up against Vanderbilt on Tuesday, the Volunteers trailed 39-37 going into the second half. Tennessee posted a 40-29 run from there and won it 77-68. Both Julian Phillips and Santiago Vescovi posted 15 points apiece. 

PICK: I’ll probably stick with Tennessee here. The Volunteers have been doing a nice job on defense lately; they’ve given up fewer than 60 points in four of their last five games. Tennessee has scored pretty well themselves as well with 77 or more points in three straight games. As for Kentucky, they probably should have beaten a mediocre South Carolina team in their last outing, but they haven’t played too badly in general lately. Still, if Tennessee plays to their capabilities I don’t think the Wildcats will be able to keep up.