Tennessee vs. Kentucky prediction, odds, spread: 2026 college basketball picks for Saturday, Jan. 17

The powers of the SEC come together on Saturday as the No. 24 Tennessee Volunteers host the Kentucky Wildcats. Both teams picked up dramatic midweek wins and look to turn the corner as the SEC heats up after starting 2-2 in the conference. Tennessee is 12-5 overall, while Kentucky is 11-6 this season. The Wildcats swept the regular season series last year, but the Vols avenged those losses with a 78-65 victory in the 2025 Sweet 16.

Tipoff is at noon ET from Thompson-Boling Arena at the Food City Center in Knoxville, Tennessee. The Vols are 5.5-point favorites in the latest Tennessee vs. Kentucky odds, while the over/under is 147.5, up two points from the opening line. Before making any Kentucky vs. Tennessee picks, check out men’s college basketball predictions and betting advice from the SportsLine Projection Model.

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The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every college basketball game 10,000 times and enters Week 11 a scorching 9-1 on its top-rated over/under college basketball picks dating back to last season. Anyone who followed his college basketball betting tips on sportsbooks and betting apps could have seen solid returns.

Today, the model has simulated Tennessee vs. Kentucky 10,000 times and just revealed its men’s college basketball picks and betting predictions. You can now head over to SportsLine to see the model’s choices. Here are several men’s college basketball odds and men’s college basketball betting lines for Kentucky vs. Tennessee:

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How to make Tennessee vs. Kentucky picks

After simulating Tennessee vs. Kentucky 10,000 times, SportsLine’s model is exceeding the total (147.5 points). Five straight Tennessee games have reached the total, and Tennessee is 11-6 on the season. Three of the last five Tennessee vs. Kentucky matchups have also led to at least 148 points combined.

SportsLine’s model projects four players to score in double figures with Ja’Kobi Gillespie (19.2 points) leading the way for Tennessee and Otega Oweh (17.2 points) for Kentucky. The teams combine for a total of 154 points while the Over reaches 71% of the time.

The model also indicates that one side of the gap hits almost 60% of the time. You can only see this pick on SportsLine.

So who does Kentucky win against Tennessee, and which side of the spread reaches nearly 60% of the time? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the spread to be on, all from the model that has simulated this game 10,000 times, and find out.