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It’s a stretch to think the Vanderbilt Commodores are a NCAA Tournament team, but they are making a late season run to be included in the conversation. The Commodores will take a season-best four game winning streak to Rupp Arena for a confrontation with the SEC’s top team Kentucky Wildcats on Tuesday. A win over UK and run through the conference tournament might be enough to propel Vandy to the Big Dance, but the Commodores haven’t had much success against UK lately.
This war on the floor will go down Tuesday, February 28, 2017, at 9 p.m. ET at Rupp Arena. The game will be televised live on ESPN. We'll have NCAA basketball odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the college basketball Tuesday schedule.
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Vanderbilt’s best stretch of play is coming at the perfect time. The Commodores won their season-high fourth straight game with a solid defensive effort and all-around play, smothering Mississippi State in a 77-48 win on Saturday. It was the Dores’ fourth consecutive cover win and they are an impressive 8-3 ATS in their last 11 games. Vandy hasn’t been as efficient on the road and is just 5-5 SU overall. However, the Commodores have put a nice little run together in conference play and have gone 4-1 SU and ATS in their past five roadies.
It’s been a whacky season for Kentucky, but the team picked to lead the SEC is doing just that at the end of the regular season. Following their embarrassing 24-point loss to Florida in Gainesville last month, the Wildcats have been on a tear, rattling off six straight wins and avenging that earlier loss to the Gators with a 76-66 cover win on Saturday. More impressive, the Cats did it without injured De’Aaron Fox. The wildcats haven’t dominated opponents like in the past, but they are winning games. They covered the 4.5-point spread Saturday, but are just 4-10 ATS in their last 14 games overall.
Injury Report
The injury to Fox is definitely a blow, but the Wildcats relied on their abundance of talent to overcome the loss and beat Florida. Fox sat with a knee injury, taking the leading assist man and second leading scorer off the floor. That allowed Malik Monk to shine on the big stage. Monk dropped in 33 against the Gators and was unconscious from the field. It’s safe to say that if not for Monk’s heroics, the Wildcats could have lost that game.
Now the question is, can Monk do the same two games in a row? We’re not sure if Fox will be ready to play on Tuesday, and while the Cats were able to run their offense without him, it’s difficult to imagine them having the same amount of success against Vanderbilt. Kentucky turned up the heat defensively, holding Florida to 36 percent shooting, but the Cats turned the ball over 14 times, a huge indication that they missed their star point guard.
Key Stat
The Commodores are the SEC’s top three-point shooting team and they’ve used that weapon to produce nine SEC wins. In Saturday’s win over Mississippi State, Vandy hit 14 of 29 triples and they’ve knocked down 41 during their four-game winning streak. It’s not a shot that the Commodores are looking to launch, rather when the opportunity comes up in the flow of the offense. And because of it, opponents have a tough time defending the shot.
And it’s a weapon the Commodores could use against Kentucky. Making the long distance shot opens up a lot of possibilities down low. UK plays a harassing style and making triples will force the Wildcats to defend the perimeter, which could lead to a big game for Luke Kornet. Vandy shot just 27 percent from long range when the teams met earlier this season and still were within striking distance late. A few more threes and the outcome could have been different.
Free College Basketball ATS Picks
Vandy needs to play a near perfect game in order to get the road win at UK, and that probably won’t happen. The Commodores are riding a nice four-game winning streak, however three of those wins came against teams at the bottom of the standings and the other against a slumping South Carolina squad. So it’s hard to imagine the Commodores going into Lexington and coming out victorious.
And once Coach Cal called out his team after losing big to Florida, the Wildcats have responded by playing some of its best basketball. They even knocked off the Gators in the rematch without their floor leader Fox. Kentucky has too much talent and the kids are coming together at the right time. Look for UK to get a big cover win at home in this one.
College Basketball Odds: Kentucky 83, Vanderbilt 69
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