The Ohio State Buckeyes are looking sharp in Chris Holtmann’s third season. Holtmann’s team looks like it has turned a corner, and Ohio State is currently rated the best team in the country according to Ken Pomeroy with a 10-1 record. They already have two wins over top ten opponents, and the Buckeyes will look to add another resume building win in Sin City just before Christmas when they face John Calipari’s Kentucky Wildcats. Kentucky is 8-2 entering this game, but they haven’t faced another top tier opponent since the season tipped off.
This showdown between top ten teams will take place on Saturday, December 21, 2019. Tip-off will be at 5:15 p.m. ET from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The game will be broadcast on CBS.
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Odds Analysis
Ohio State has some excellent wins already this season. The Buckeyes topped Cincinnati at home in their first game, and they hammered No. 10 Villanova in mid-November. They beat the Wildcats 76-51 in Columbus as part of a run where they defeated eight straight opponents by at least 20 points. Ohio State dismantled North Carolina 74-49 in Chapel Hill during this stretch too, but they were stunned by Minnesota last weekend for their first loss of the season. Fortunately, they followed that defeat up with an easy 80-48 victory over Southeast Missouri State on Tuesday.
The Wildcats knocked off the preseason No. 1 team in the country in the Champions Classic when they beat Michigan State 69-62. That led to Kentucky assuming the No. 1 spot in the polls, but the Wildcats lost it a week later when they were stunned at home by 8-4 Evansville. They shrugged off the defeat with six straight wins, but they fell again in a neutral site game last night when Utah knocked off Kentucky 69-66. The Wildcats were favored by 9.5 points per the college basketball betting odds in that game, so an outright defeat was very disappointing.
Key Injuries
Musa Jallow is out indefinitely for the Buckeyes because of an ankle injury, but the bigger concern is the status of Duane Washington Jr. Washington has missed Ohio State’s last two games due to a rib injury, and the second-leading scorer on the team is needed in this spot. He is hitting over 52 percent of his field goals and more than 53 percent of his triples this campaign, and that shooting touch would come in handy against Kentucky.
Forward Nate Sestina and guard Dontaie Allen are both out indefinitely for Kentucky. Allen has yet to play this season due to a knee injury, while Sestina is averaging 25.3 MPG in the seven games that he took part in before injuring his wrist. Sestina returned to action against Utah last night, but he only played 10 minutes and didn’t take a shot as Calipari was simply giving his forward some run.
Player to Watch
Kaleb Wesson is having a great season for Ohio State. The 6’9, 270 pound power forward is using his frame effectively, and he is the star of the Buckeyes through the first third of the year. Wesson is averaging 14.3 PPG and 9.1 RPG, and it’s clear he worked on his shooting stroke over the summer. The big man is hitting 45.9 percent of his threes, up considerably from last year.
Prediction
Ohio State should be the favorite here given the competition this team has defeated, but Kentucky will be a popular pick on name recognition. That will give you a chance to take the Buckeyes at a discounted price.
CBB Betting Odds: Ohio State 75, Kentucky 67
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