The No. 1 Kentucky Wildcats had another challenge in conference play in the form of Vanderbilt on Tuesday. The South Carolina Gamecocks are next on Kentucky’s radar in what may be an exciting afternoon of SEC action. Can the Wildcats go back to their dominating ways? Or will the Gamecocks provide another pesky challenger? Read on as we breakdown the action to come.
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[sc:MarchMadness ]Kentucky Wildcats vs. South Carolina Gamecocks Preview
Where: Colonial Life Arena, South Carolina
When: Saturday, January 24, 12:00 PM ET
Line: Kentucky Wildcats at South Carolina Gamecocks – view all NCAA Basketball lines
Betting on the Kentucky Wildcats
After two convincing victories over Missouri (86-37) and Alabama (70-48), Kentucky found itself in quite a challenge against the Vanderbilt Commodores on Tuesday. The Wildcats won that game 65-57, but not after a tightly-contested second half which they barely edged 32-31.
[sc:NCAAB240banner ]Guard Aaron Harrison did most of the damage for the Wildcats as he went 4-for-7 (including 2-for-3 on three-pointers) from the field for 14 points. Forward Karl-Anthony Towns dominated on the other side of the ball for a season-high seven blocks to make up for his paltry day on the field (1-for-4). Meanwhile, another big man in Willie Cauley-Stein dominated on the boards with a game-high 10 rebounds.
This kind of complete performance across the court has led Kentucky to an undefeated 18-0 slate this season. However, they Wildcats haven’t been too spectacular in conference play going 2-3 ATS against the SEC. They may be in another tight spot against the defensive-minded South Carolina, who’ve held opponents to shoot 36 percent from the field (sixth in the nation).
Still, Kentucky may be able to pull away from the Gamecocks if they can sink in their three-pointers courtesy of Harrison. The Wildcats guard has shot 43 percent from downtown over his last five games. Meanwhile, South Carolina has dipped in their three-point defense allowing their opponents to sink in 39 percent of three-point attempts over their last three games.
Kentucky can also clean up the boards with their 13.5 rebounds per game (sixth in the nation) to take possession away from their opponents. Blocks should also help from their frontcourt duo of Cauley-Stein and Towns as South Carolina has allowed 4.1 blocks per game (278th in the nation). Towns and Cauley-Stein have averaged about two blocks per game to help Kentucky rank first overall with 7.9 blocks per game.
Betting on the South Carolina Gamecocks
At face value, the South Carolina Gamecocks may not offer much of a challenge against No. 1 Kentucky. South Carolina has lost four of their last five games (1-4 ATS). However, the Gamecocks have managed to stay close to their competition with an average scoring margin of just three points over their past three games. The Gamecocks have also won their lone game against a ranked team thus far, besting Iowa State 64-60 on January 3.
If there’s a time for the Gamecocks’ sharpshooters to strike, it would be now. The Wildcats allowed Vanderbilt to shoot 42 percent from the field and 39 percent from the three-point line on Tuesday, both way off their season averages of 31 and 26 percent, respectively.
The focus will be on forward Laimonas Chatkevicius, who has shot 59 percent from the field this season. He had his first double-double in an SEC game with 15 points and 11 rebounds against Auburn (a 71-68 loss) on Saturday. However, he played just seven minutes and only had one rebound in the Gamecocks’ 66-62 loss to Tennessee on Tuesday.
Having Chatkevicius drawing Kentucky’s defenders should also allow the Gamecocks’ leading scorer guard Duane Notice (12.4 points per game) some open looks. Another guard should also help shoulder South Carolina’s scoring load in Tyrone Johnson. He has averaged 13 points on 40 percent shooting over his last five games. What should make Johnson even more effective is his ability to create plays averaging 3.7 assists per game, the most among Gamecocks starters.
Writer’s Prediction
Kentucky remains undefeated, but South Carolina covers. Think otherwise? Create a betting account now and put your pick to the test.
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