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A pair of star-studded top-25 SEC teams tip off Friday afternoon in the tournament quarterfinals.
Tennessee will match up with Vanderbilt before both teams participate in the NCAA Tournament.
The fourth-seeded Commodores come in as 1.5-point favorites at bet365, with the total set at 145.5 points.
These two teams split their regular-season matchups, with Tennessee winning 69-65 in February and Vanderbilt defeating Tennessee last week, 86-82.
These two play each other very tightly and know each other well, making Friday’s game quite intriguing.
Fifth-seeded Tennessee will rely on guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie to be its main facilitator on offense. He leads the team in points (17.9 points per game) and assists (5.5 assists).
He has really struggled against Vanderbilt in two games, shooting 11-of-36 from the field (30.5 percent) and 4-of-18 (22.2 percent) from 3-point range, including 1-of-11 in the last contest.
Gillespie’s poor performances against Vanderbilt are certainly uncharacteristic, and it begs the question of whether Vanderbilt just has his number or if it’s a coincidence.
Tennessee will then have to contend with Tyler Tanner on the opposite end as Vanderbilt’s top point scorer and playmaker.
These two teams are rated very highly when looking at KenPom’s rankings, with Vanderbilt coming in at No. 13 and Tennessee sitting at No. 14.
Bart Torvik has Tennessee rated slightly higher, coming in at No.13, and Vanderbilt at No. 15. FTN has similar thoughts, with the Volunteers rated No. 12 and Commodores No. 14.
This third clash between these in-state rivals should be quite the battle, and my model places value on the Volunteers.
My model has Volunteers as two-point favorites on Friday afternoon, making them certainly a worthy wager.
PREDICTION: Tennessee +1.5 (-110, bet365)
Erich Richter is a brazilian jiu-jitsu blue belt but he has a black belt in MMA betting. During the football season he’s showcased massive profits at The Post in the player prop market the last two seasons. While constantly betting long shots, his return on investment is 30.15 percent since 2022.
