Tennessee vs Ole Miss Prediction, Odds & Best Bet for March 9 SEC Tournament (Volunteers Dominate First Half)

Tennessee vs Ole Miss Game Info

• 2022-23 NCAA Basketball SEC Tournament Game
• No. 17 Tennessee (22-9, 11-7 SEC) vs. Ole Miss (12-20, 3-15 SEC)
• Date: Thursday, March 9, 2023
• Time: 3:30 PM ET
• Venue: Bridgestone Arena -- Nashville, Tennessee
• Coverage: SEC Network

The SEC Tournament continues on Thursday with a thrilling matchup between the Ole Miss Rebels and Tennessee Volunteers. Tennessee is aiming to be back-to-back SEC champions for the first time ever. The winner of this second round showdown will advance to face off against the Missouri Tigers.

Ole Miss enters as a loser in six of its last eight games, but is coming off a 67-61 win over South Carolina in the first round on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Tennessee has dropped three of its last five games following a 79-70 loss to Auburn on Saturday. Which SEC squad will emerge victorious today?

Tennessee vs Ole Miss Odds & Spread

• All college basketball betting lines, odds and prop bets are from FanDuel Sportsbook.
• Moneyline: TENN: (-880) | MISS: (+580)
• Spread: TENN: -11.5 (-120) | MISS: +11.5 (-102)
• Total: 127.5 -- Over: (-110) | Under: (-110)

Tennessee enters this contest as a clear favorite on the moneyline and spread per FanDuel Sportsbook's odds. This 3:30 p.m. ET clash also features an over/under of 127.5 points, which is below average compared to Thursday's projected totals.

Tennessee vs Ole Miss Betting Trends

• Tennessee has covered the spread 16 times in 31 games.
• The Volunteers are 9-4 as 11.5-point favorites or more.
• There have been 13 Tennessee's games (out of 31) that hit the over this year.
• Ole Miss has covered the spread 12 times in 32 games.
• The Rebels have covered every time (1-0) as a 11.5-point underdog or greater this season.
• There have been 17 Ole Miss games (out of 32) that went over the total this year.

Tennessee Rank	Tennessee AVG		Ole Miss AVG	Ole Miss Rank
180th	71.9	Points Scored	67.9	279th
3rd	57.5	Points Allowed	69	143rd
14th	36	Rebounds	32.6	123rd
5th	11.7	Off. Rebounds	10.3	41st
157th	7.6	3pt Made	6.1	310th
8th	17.1	Assists	13.1	173rd
109th	11.2	Turnovers	11.8	175th

Tennessee vs Ole Miss Prediction & Pick

Tennessee needs to build some momentum before the NCAA Tournament arrives after falling short a few times at the end of the regular season. The Volunteers possess a defense capable of catapulting them to a national title. After all, they rank No. 1 when it comes to defensive efficiency this season.

Head coach Rick Barnes' team allows 57.5 points per game (No. 3 in NCAA) on a shooting percentage of 36.4% (No. 1 in NCAA). The Rebels have their work cut out for themselves here. They have allowed an average of 73.4 points over their last five games and don't have nearly the same depth on defense.

Tennessee has won seven of its last eight games against Ole Miss, so back the Volunteers today.

Final Score Prediction: Tennessee: 69 | Ole Miss: 59

Tennessee vs Ole Miss Best Bet

This is expected to be a Tennessee-favored crowd with the game taking place in Nashville, which should help the Volunteers feel at home right away. Keep in mind three of Ole Miss' five started played in at least 36 minutes on Wednesday and it wouldn't be surprising to see fatigue set in on Thursday.

I expect Tennessee to build a solid lead by halftime as a result. The Volunteers hold opponents to just 26.7 points per game in the first half (No. 4 in NCAA) on the year, while they have scored an average of 35.3 points in the first half of their last three games. They can't afford to come out flat in this contest.

Bet: Tennessee Volunteers First Half -6.5 (-115)

Larry Rupp is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Larry Rupp also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username phillyfan424. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel. 

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.