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It's a battle of Southeastern Conference heavyweights when the 18th-ranked Missouri Tigers host the No. 10 Alabama Crimson Tide in a Saturday matinee at Mizzou Arena. The Crimson Tide (15-4) have won 10 of their past 11 games, cruising to an 18-point victory against LSU on Wednesday after a five-point setback to No. 24 Oklahoma last weekend. Missouri (12-3) has won five of its past six and is 3-1 this season against ranked teams. Bama is 10-0 in SEC play, while the Tigers are 5-3, but Mizzou is 7-1 at home this season.

Tip-off is scheduled for noon ET in Columbia, Mo. The Crimson Tide are 2.5-point favorites in the latest Alabama vs. Missouri odds from William Hill Sportsbook, and the over-under for total points scored is 151.5. Before making any Missouri vs. Alabama picks, check out the college basketball predictions and betting advice from the SportsLine Projection Model.

The model simulates every Division I college basketball game 10,000 times. Over the past four-plus years, the proprietary computer model has generated an impressive profit of almost $2,300 for $100 players on its top-rated college basketball picks against the spread. Anyone who has followed it has seen huge returns.

Now, the model has set its sights on Alabama vs. Missouri. You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several college basketball odds and trends for Missouri vs. Alabama:

  • Alabama vs. Missouri: Crimson Tide -2.5
  • Alabama vs. Missouri over-under: 151.5
  • BAMA: F Herbert Jones has 11 steals and six blocked shots over the past four games.
  • MIZZOU: G Dru Smith has scored at least 15 points in five of the past six games. 

Why Missouri can cover 

Missouri is 8-2 straight up in its last 10 home games against Alabama, and Jeremiah Tilmon and Xavier Pinson showed in a win against TCU last weekend that they can take over a game when necessary. Tilmon had 36 points and Pinson scored 33 in the overtime victory, and Pinson is the team's top scorer at 15.1 per game while Tilmon averages 13.5. Dru Smith, who scored a season-high 26 in a 75-50 victory against Kentucky on Wednesday, averages 13.9.

The Tigers are 6-2 against the spread against ranked teams over the past two years, and Tilmon could pose a matchup problem for the Tide. The 6-foot-10 forward averages 7.9 rebounds and 1.3 blocks, and he makes more than 64 percent of his shots from the field. The Tigers shooters can get hot as they did against TCU, converting a season-best 54.7 from the field and making 11 of 23 3-pointers. Smith hits 39.6 percent from long range, while Pinson is at 35.7.   

Why Alabama can cover

Alabama is 6-3-1 against the spread in its last 10 road games, and the Tide rely on the 3-pointer and strong perimeter defense. Opponents shoot under 40 percent from the field and just over 30 percent from 3-point range. Relentless leader Herbert Jones averages 1.8 steals and more than a block per game and hits the boards hard on both ends, averaging a team-high six per game. The Tide average 8.6 steals per contest and allow just over 69 points.

Jaden Shackelford scores a team-best 13.9 points per game, shooting 34.3 percent from 3-point range. John Petty is the main outside threat, hitting 39.7 percent on a team-high 116 tries. Jones is very efficient when he shoots from outside, knocking down 14 of 30 tries (46.7 percent) while scoring more than 12 points per contest. Jahvon Quinerly is the facilitator, dishing out a team-high 3.1 assists, scoring more than 11 and hitting 37.7 percent on his threes.  

How to make Missouri vs. Alabama picks

The model is leaning under on the total, projecting both teams combine for 147 points. It has also generated an against-the-spread pick that is hitting in well over 50 percent of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.

So who wins Missouri vs. Alabama? And which side of the spread hits in well over 50 percent of simulations? Visit SportsLine right now to see which side of the spread you need to jump on, all from the computer model that has crushed its college basketball picks.