The No. 12 Tennessee Volunteers (1-0) will face an early road test when they travel to the Louisville Cardinals (1-0) on Saturday afternoon. Tennessee, which is coming off its second Elite Eight appearance in school history, picked up an 80-64 win over Gardner-Webb in its opener on Monday. Louisville opened a new era under first-year head coach Pat Kelsey earlier this week, cruising to a 93-45 win over Morehead State. Kelsey overhauled the roster in the offseason after Louisville went 8-24 in its final year under head coach Kenny Payne.
Tipoff is set for noon ET on Saturday at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville. The Cardinals are favored by 1.5 points in the latest Louisville vs. Tennessee odds, while the over/under is 154 points, per SportsLine consensus. Before entering any Tennessee vs. Louisville picks, you’ll want to see the NCAA Basketball predictions from the model at SportsLine.
The model simulates every Division 1 college basketball game 10,000 times. It enters the 2024-25 season on a 153-110 betting roll (+1891) on all top-rated college basketball picks dating back to 2023. Anyone following at sportsbooks and on betting apps has seen huge returns.
The model has set its sights on Louisville vs. Tennessee. You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several college basketball betting lines for the Tennessee vs. Louisville game:
- Louisville vs. Tennessee spread: Louisville -1.5
- Louisville vs. Tennessee over/under: 154.5 points
- Louisville vs. Tennessee money line: Louisville -121, Tennessee +101
- Louisville vs. Tennessee picks: See picks here
- Louisville vs. Tennessee streaming: FuboTV (Try for free)
Why Louisville can cover
Louisville is not only playing under a new head coach, but its roster is completely different from last season. The Cardinals only have one walk-on returning from last year’s team, as Kelsey used the transfer portal to snag a roster full of quality players. Five players scored in double figures in Monday’s blowout win over Morehead State, led by Kasean Pryor’s 18-point, 12-rebound double-double.
The Cardinals held Morehead State to just 3 of 28 shooting in the first half and raced out to a 41-14 lead at halftime, allowing them to empty the bench down the stretch. Despite playing in their first game together, they committed just five turnovers while forcing 21. Senior guard Terrence Edwards Jr. was one of Kelsey’s biggest hauls from the portal after he averaged 17.2 points and 4.4 rebounds for James Madison last season. See which team to pick here.
Why Tennessee can cover
Tennessee continues to build momentum under legendary head coach Rick Barnes, who has 807 wins in his career. His next win will give him 204 victories at Tennessee, which will tie him with Don Devoe for second on the school’s all-time wins list. He moved into 13th place nationally in all-time wins on Monday when the Vols beat Gardner-Webb by 16 points.
They led by as many as 27 points in the second half before letting off the gas pedal down the stretch. Fifth-year transfer guard Chaz Lanier had 18 points and knocked down four 3-pointers in his first game, while senior guard Jordan Gainey added 16 points off the bench. Tennessee has a clear floor general in senior guard Zakai Zeigler, who had 13 points and nine assists on Monday. See which team to pick here.
How to make Louisville vs. Tennessee picks
The model has simulated Tennessee vs. Louisville 10,000 times and the results are in. The model is leaning Under, and it’s also generated a point-spread pick that is hitting in over 90% of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.
So who wins Louisville vs. Tennessee, and which side of the spread hits over 90% of the time? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the Tennessee vs. Louisville spread you need to jump on, all from the model that is on a 153-110 roll on top-rated college basketball picks, and find out.
