Georgia vs Tennessee | Prediction & Pick

NCAA Basketball Free Pick – Saturday, February 19, 2011

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Georgia (17-8) vs Tennessee (16-10)
Saturday, February 19, 2011 at 1:00 PM EST on CBS

Last meeting: Tennessee was 59-57 at Georgia as 4.5 underdogs last month.

Georgia continues to tantalize and tease this season.  The amazing thing is that for such an inconsistent team they have played well on the road going 6-2 SU (6-1 ATS).  The Bulldogs have one of the better duos in the SEC in forward Trey Thompkins and guard Travis Leslie.  Thompkins game is very solid in the post but Leslie’s game doesn’t yet match his freakish athleticism.  In his last game Leslie was 2 of 9 in their loss to Vanderbilt earlier in the week.  That is typical of his poor games but he always hits the boards hard and demands lots of attention even when he can’t get his shot to fall.  Tennessee likes to play a pretty loose style which suits Leslie very well, he scored 19 in their blowout of Tennessee in Athens last season.

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I could probably write the same adage about consistency for Tennessee as well.  This is a team that handed Pittsburgh one of its only two losses but since they began conference play they have been out of synch.  Part of it has been the status of their coach Bruce Pearl, who is now back guiding the club, while it doesn’t help relying on skittish players like Scotty Hopson to lead the way.  Hopson is talented for sure but he seems more interested in gaining notoriety than playing winning basketball and has trouble adjusting his game to the situations at hand.  With only 16 wins the Vols desperately need to defend their home floor if they want to be among the lucky 68 on Selection Sunday.  Sadly they are just 10-5 SU at home and an even uglier 5-9 ATS be wary.

The current line on this one is Tennessee -4.  I believe that Tennessee will win a close contest but I am hesitant to wager on their success.  Not a great deal of value here, more in other places on a busy Saturday.

Prediction: Tennessee will need big games from interior players Tobias Harris and Brian Williams to counter Thompkins.  They will get them and grind out an important win.  It won’t be pretty but they will take it.

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Score:  Tennessee 64 – Georgia 60

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Georgia Bulldogs Betting Trends

• Bulldogs are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 games as a road underdog.
• Bulldogs are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 road games vs. a team with a home winning % of greater than .600.
• Bulldogs are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 road games.

Tennessee Volunteers Betting Trends

• Volunteers are 4-9 ATS in their last 13 games as a favorite.
• Volunteers are 3-7 ATS in their last 10 home games.
• Volunteers are 3-7 ATS in their last 10 games as a home favorite.