Tennessee Volunteers vs Arizona Wildcats Betting Picks & Predictions
Tennessee is on the road playing Arizona at the McKale Memorial Center stadium on Saturday, 12/17/2022 @ 10:30pm EST. Arizona -2.25 was the opening favorite and current line
Game outlook
Tennessee is on the road playing Arizona at the McKale Memorial Center stadium on Saturday, 12/17/2022 @ 10:30pm EST. Arizona -2.25 was the opening favorite and current line is Arizona -3.5.
In perhaps the most intriguing matchup of the weekend, the #6 Tennessee Volunteers travel to Tucson, Arizona to face the #9 Arizona Wildcats. Since being upset by Colorado earlier in the season, the Volunteers have won eight straight games. The Wildcats are 9-1 on the season and have won three straight games since losing to Utah. 10:30pm EST is the time for the opening tap.
A quality matchup once again
Due to their hot start to the season, the #6 Tennessee Volunteers appear to be in line for a top-3 seed in the NCAA Tournament this March. To start the season, the Volunteers have defeated Butler, USC, Kansas, and Maryland, all power-five conference teams. Since then, they have won eight straight games, including a 56-53 win over the then #20 Terrapins last Sunday in the Hall of Fame Invitational. Despite a sluggish Volunteer offense, Tennessee's defense held Maryland to 33% shooting overall and .09% from 3-point range. In the Hall of Fame Invitational, Zakai Zeigler led with 12 points. In contrast, freshman Tobe Awaka played his most significant minutes of the season with seven points and eight rebounds. After holding Maryland to 18% shooting in the first half, Tennessee led by 17 points at halftime.
With a win in this game, the streaking Volunteers could move into the Top-25 College Basketball poll next week. In this game against Arizona, they will try to impose their will on the road with perhaps the most effective defense in the country so far. Arizona ranks 2nd in defensive field goal percentage and 3rd in scoring defense this season. This week, teams are shooting just 33% against the Volunteers and 20% from three-point range. Averaging eight 3-point field goals per game, Tennessee allows just over four. As a team, Tennessee averages over 42 rebounds per game and has a +8.8 rebounding differential. As a team, they move the ball very well, averaging nearly 17 assists per game while forcing 19 turnovers.