The Alabama Crimson Tide takes on the South Carolina Gamecocks in Columbia, SC. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. ET on SEC Network.
Alabama is favored by 11 points on the spread with a moneyline of -750. The total is set at 157 points.
Here are my Alabama vs. South Carolina predictions and college basketball picks for January 8, 2025.
Alabama vs South Carolina Prediction
My Pick: Alabama -9.5 (Play to -10.5)
My Alabama vs South Carolina best bet is on the Tide spread, with the best odds currently available at BetMGM. For all of your college basketball bets, be sure to find the best lines by using our live NCAAB odds page.
Alabama vs South Carolina Odds, Spread, Pick
| Alabama Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-11 -110 | 157 -110 / -110 | -750 |
| South Carolina Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+11 -110 | 157 -110 / -110 | +525 |
- Alabama vs South Carolina spread: Alabama -11
- Alabama vs South Carolina over/under: 157 points
- Alabama vs South Carolina moneyline: Alabama -750, South Carolina +525
- Alabama vs South Carolina best bet: Alabama -9.5 (Play to -10.5)
My Alabama vs South Carolina College Basketball Betting Preview
It's actually amazing to think about the upside and potential that Alabama could have this season.
The Tide went undefeated from the start of December to January 4, winning six games by an average of 18 points while putting up 94.5 points per night.
But on the season, Alabama is still only shooting 31.6% from 3.
At some point that percentage is going to rise — and possibly pretty drastically — which is scary for the rest of the SEC — and the country.
I'm going to count on that shooting to start to regress positively in this one. But even if it doesn't, Alabama is battle-tested (road games at Purdue and UNC this season) and experienced (Mark Sears, Grant Nelson, etc).
Most importantly, the Tide can score in a heartbeat while playing at the fifth-fastest adjusted tempo nationally. If they want to cover a 9.5-point spread on the road, they can.
The only real shot that South Carolina has in this game is if it slows the tempo way down. But that's easier said than done against a significant step up in competition.
The Gamecocks have a quality win over Clemson and they beat two ACC programs, but they also lost at home to North Florida, were smoked by Mississippi State by 25 on the road and weren't particularly close in defeats to Indiana and Xavier.
Collin Murray-Boyles is immensely talented, 5-foot-11 Jamarii Thomas has been a nice portal addition and this is a revenge game angle for Nick Pringle (who used to play for Alabama).
However, no one has been successfully able to slow down the Tide, and a so-so Gamecock offense isn't going to be able to keep up in the scoring column — and in the pace department — with Nate Oats' club.
Expect the Tide to finally shoot the ball at a high level.
