The No. 22 Vanderbilt Commodores (25-7) face the fourth-ranked Florida Gators (26-6) Saturday afternoon in and SEC Tournament semifinal for a 1 p.m. ET (ESPN) tip at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. Let’s analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s NCAA basketball odds around the Vanderbilt vs. Florida odds and make our expert college basketball picks and predictions for the best bets.
Vanderbilt has won 3 games in a row after taking down Tennessee 75-68 in a quarterfinal Friday, covering as a 2.5-point underdog with the Under (147.5) hitting. G Duke Miles led all scorers with 30 points — he hit 4 of 5 3’s — and G Tyler Tanner chipped in 19. The fourth-seeded Commodores trailed most of the first half and by 7 points 4:09 into the second half before taking the lead for good on a 3-point play by G Chandler Bing (4 points) with 11:51 to go.
Top-seed Florida enters on a 12-game win streak after handling Kentucky 71-63 Friday but failing to cover as a 10.5-point favorite with the Under (160.5) hit. F Alex Condon recorded game-highs in points (22) and rebounds (10) for a double-double and F Thomas Haugh finished with 13 points and 5 boards. The Gators outrebounded the Wildcats 50-29 and never trailed in the victory.
In the lone head-to-head meeting this season (Jan. 17), Florida took down Vanderbilt 98-94, covering as a 1.5-point road favorite with the Over (164.5) hitting. Florida C Rueben Chinyelu pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds and scored 16 of his 20 points in the second half — he didn’t miss a shot in the final 20 minutes, going 5 for 5 from the field and 6 for 6 at the line. G Xaivian Lee also scored 20 points in the win, while Tanner led 5 Commodores in double figures with 20 points of his own.
Fifteenth-seeded Ole Miss (15-19) and No. 17 Arkansas (24-8), the third seed, will face off in the other SEC semifinal.
– Rankings: USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll
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Florida 90, Vanderbilt 79
PASS.
There is minimal value on the Gators (-350) are playing some of their best basketball all season … as proven by their current 12-game win streak.
BET FLORIDA -8.5 (-102).
The Gators are 9-3 ATS over their last 12 games, 14-4 ATS in their last 18 and 18-14 ATS overall. They have covered in 5 of their last 6 games, with the last 12 wins coming by at least 8 points.
The Commodores have failed to cover in 4 of their last 7 overall. Plus, 2 of their last 3 losses in this series were by 11 or more points.
Simply put, the Gators are one of the best teams in the country … not only with a good shot at winning this SEC Tournament but they might just defend last season’s national title.
BET OVER 160.5 (-110).
The regular-season contest between these 2 SEC foes was 8 points shy of reaching 200, with the Over (164.5) hitting with ease.
The Commodores have scored at least 86 points in 3 of their last 5 games and at least 80 in 7 of their last 10. They have allowed 80 or more points in 4 of their last 5.
The Gators have scored 84 or more points in 10 of their last 12, including 108 or more twice in their last 4 games. They have topped 92 in 4 of their last 8 and have allowed 74 or more points in 5 of their last 8.
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