Two teams with lofty expectations square off Saturday at 1 p.m. ET when the No. 13 Kentucky Wildcats (10-2) visit the Alabama Crimson Tide (9-3) at Coleman Coliseum. The Wildcats have rebounded well after a season-opening blowout against Duke, winning 10 of their next 11 games. John Calipari's squad has silenced their early season critics after back-to-back wins over North Carolina and Louisville. The Crimson Tide, meanwhile, have won four straight, but enter Saturday's SEC showdown as a 4.5-point underdog in the latest Kentucky vs. Alabama odds. The over-under, or total points Vegas thinks will be scored, sits at 150. Before you make any Kentucky vs. Alabama picks and college basketball predictions, you'll want to see what SportsLine's advanced computer model has to say.
This model, which simulates every game 10,000 times, has raked in the winnings for those following its picks. Over the past two years, the SportsLine Projection Model has returned over $5,200 to $100 players on its top-rated college basketball picks. And it entered Week 9 of the 2018-19 college basketball season on a blistering 32-14 run on its top-rated against the spread picks. Anybody who has been following it is way up.
Now it's locked in on Kentucky vs. Alabama. We can tell you it's leaning under, but it's also locked in a confident against the spread pick that hits in well over 50 percent of simulations. You can only see that one at SportsLine.
The model knows the Wildcats enter SEC play having won 10 of their last 11 games. Kentucky will need another huge performance from freshman guard Tyler Herro if the Wildcats want to start conference play with a victory. Herro has been filling the stat sheet in recent weeks, averaging over 16 points and 4.3 rebounds in his last six outings. And he's coming off his best performance of the season against Louisville, posting 24 points, five rebounds and two steals.
His play on both ends has helped Kentucky cover in five of its last six games, and the Wildcats' offense has been impressive overall during that span. They're averaging over 81 points in their last six games.
But just because the Wildcats are coming in hot doesn't mean they'll cover the Kentucky vs. Alabama spread.
Alabama enters Saturday on a four game win streak, which includes victories over Arizona and Penn State. After losing Colin Sexton to the NBA Draft last year, the Crimson Tide have re-stocked and found themselves an explosive playmaker that can take over a game.
Freshman guard Kira Lewis Jr. leads the Tide in both scoring (15.0 ppg) and assists (3.2 apg). He's averaging 18.6 points in his last three contests and has proven to be a difficult matchup for opposing defenders.
Who wins Kentucky vs. Alabama? And which side of the spread hits in well over 50 percent of simulations? Visit SportsLine now to find out which side of the Kentucky vs. Alabama spread you should be all over, from the model that has returned more than $5,200 to $100 players the last two years.
