The South Carolina Gamecocks take on the Tennessee Volunteers in Knoxville, TN. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. ET on SEC Network.
Tennessee is favored by 15 points on the spread with a moneyline of -1400. The total is set at 131.5 points.
Here are my South Carolina vs. Tennessee predictions and college basketball picks for March 8, 2025.
South Carolina vs Tennessee Prediction
My Pick: PASS | Lean Tennessee -15.5
My South Carolina vs Tennessee best bet is on the Volunteers spread, with the best odds currently available at DraftKings. For all of your college basketball bets, find the best lines using our live NCAAB odds page.
South Carolina vs Tennessee Odds, Spread, Pick
| South Carolina Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+15 -110 | 131.5 -110o / -110u | +850 |
| Tennessee Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-15 -110 | 131.5 -110o / -110u | -1400 |
- South Carolina vs Tennessee spread: Tennessee -15
- South Carolina vs Tennessee over/under: 131.5 points
- South Carolina vs Tennessee moneyline: Tennessee -1400, South Carolina +850
- South Carolina vs Tennessee best bet: PASS | Lean Tennessee -15.5
My South Carolina vs Tennessee College Basketball Betting Preview
While South Carolina’s season will likely end next week, I’m happy the Gamecocks squeaked out a few wins down the stretch, taking down Texas and Arkansas over the past few weeks.
That said, do they stand a chance against Tennessee in Knoxville on Saturday?
The Vols should be fired up, as they’re looking to bounce back off a tough loss to Ole Miss on Wednesday and are still battling for a top-four seed in the SEC Tournament (and, thus, the coveted double-bye).
It’s also super tough to beat Rick Barnes-led defenses with on-ball creation and post-feeds, and that’s precisely what South Carolina wants to do with Jamarii Thomas and Collin Murray-Boyles.
The Volunteers can deploy elite one-on-one ball-pressure and gap denial, and the Gamecocks don’t space the floor well, don’t shoot the ball well and turn it over at the highest rate in the SEC (20%, per KenPom).
On the other end of the court, I’m not rushing to back Tennessee’s half-court execution, but I’m also not sure that South Carolina can stop Barnes’s flex-motion stuff.
The Gamecocks are a decent dribble handoff defense (.72 PPP alloewd, 81st percentile, per Synergy) but allow a super high rate of them, they’re below average at stopping cutting actions (1.19 PPP allowed, 46th percentile, per Synergy), and they’re downright dreadful against off-ball screening actions (1.12 PPP allowed, eighth percentile, per Synergy).
That said, the line is about right, and this could be a plodding, low-possession game script that makes it very hard for Tennessee’s limited offense to build margin.
I’ll pass on this game, but the matchup tells me Tennessee should win convincingly.
