The No. 17 Kentucky Wildcats (8-3, 0-0 SEC) face the Missouri Tigers (11-1, 0-0) Wednesday. Tip-off from Mizzou Arena is at 7 p.m. ET (SEC Network). Below, we analyze Tipico Sportsbook’s lines around the Kentucky vs. Missouri odds, and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and bets.
Kentucky bounced back from a 63-53 loss to then-No 14 UCLA on Dec. 17 with a 88-68 win over Florida A&M last Wednesday. The Wildcats have yet to beat a ranked opponent. Kentucky is led by 2021 consensus national player of the year F Oscar Tshiebwe, who averages 15 points per game (10th in SEC) and 13 rebounds per game (1st in SEC, 2nd overall).
The Tigers also rebounded from a ranked loss (95-67 vs. then-No. 6 Kansas on Dec. 10) by beating No. 16 Illinois 93-71 Thursday, covering as 6.5-point underdogs. It was the first win over a ranked team by Mizzou but still wasn’t enough to get the Tigers ranked themselves. Missouri’s squad is led by guard D’Moi Hodge, who averages 16.7 points per game (4th in SEC) and 2.8 steals per game (1st in SEC, 5th overall).