Saint Peter's vs. Tennessee Picks, Odds, Starting Lineups for the 2024 March Madness Round of 64
Saint Peter's vs. Tennessee Picks, Odds, Starting Lineups for the 2024 March Madness Round of 64
Saint Peter's and Tennessee will tip-off late on Thursday night from Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina during one of the final games in the Midwest Region.
The Volunteers' struggles and early exit in 2023 should either motivate Tennessee this time or linger over their heads. The Peacocks are among the nation's best when it comes to their opponent's scoring average, allowing just 63.4 points per game this season.
Dalton Knecht leads the way for Tennessee, who is laying an enormous number on the point spread facing a St. Peter's offense that is bottom-20 as a scoring unit. It'll be a highly anticipated matchup simply due to the fact that the Volunteers were bounced in Round 2 against 9-seed FAU a year ago.
Here's the current odds for Saint Peter's vs. Tennessee, along with starting lineups, which we'll use to find best bets within this matchup scheduled to start on Thursday night from Charlotte, North Carolina in the Midwest Region.
SAINT PETER'S VS. TENNESSEE START TIME, WHERE TO WATCH, AND ODDS
- Date: Thursday, March 21, 2024
- Start Time: 9:20 p.m. ET
- Where to Watch: TNT
Click here for Saint Peter's vs. Tennessee odds
SAINT PETER'S VS. TENNESSEE ODDS AND BETTING DATA
| TEAM | SPREAD | MONEYLINE | IMPLIED CHANCE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saint Peter's Peacocks | +21.5 (-115) | +2000 | 4.76% |
| Tennessee Volunteers | -21.5 (-105) | -7000 | 98.59% |
Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes is drawing a lot of skepticism based on past finishes in March Madness. This includes the Round 2 loss suffered a year ago against FAU.
The Volunteers average 79.5 points per game, which is good enough to sit inside the top 50 for this metric. Defense isn't a sore spot either, as Tennessee is holding opponents to an average of 67.9 points per game.
Saint Peter's isn't renowned for its offense, averaging a paltry 65.3 points per game, which is 343rd out of 363 teams. Fortunately for the Peacocks, the defense can be considered elite, shutting teams down with a 63.4 point-average allowed per contest.
Knecht and the Vols won't be willing to sit around and grind out a slow game. Despite a tough defensive matchup, Tennessee has too much firepower to contain, meaning Saint Peter's will be put in a precarious position trying to play catch up against another good defense that can create turnovers and capitalize with quick points on the other end.
SAINT PETER'S VS. TENNESSEE PREDICTION
Ultimately, we're not looking to bet Tennessee at such a large number on the point spread. -21.5 is a ton of points to win by, which the Volunteers have only covered once in their past six games played.
You may have already guessed where we're going in this matchup. The point total line is the more fascinating market, since the total has begun to climb since opening at 129.5 on Tuesday. Now, it's up to 129.5, which could make a difference at the end of this potential blowout.
The Peacocks' offense won all three of its tournament games scoring 50, 62, and 68 total points. Tennessee did drop back-to-back games against Kentucky in the regular season finale and during its first SEC tournament matchup against Mississippi State. However, Saint Peters' anemic offense will give the Volunteers more than enough chances to snag rebounds and make buckets in transition.
Playing catch up may also feed into St. Peter's getting some easier looks in garbage time during the second half, which is why we like taking over 53.5 total team points for the Peacocks at -118 odds.
Saint Peter's vs. Tennessee Prediction: Saint Peter's Over 53.5 Total Points (-118) Click here to see which sportsbook has the best odds
SOUTH DAKOTA STATE VS. IOWA STATE PROJECTED LINEUPS
Saint Peter's projected lineup:
- G Latrell Reid
- F Michael Houge
- G Marcus Randolph
- F Corey Washington
- F Mouhamed Sow
Tennessee projected lineup:
- G Dalton Knecht
- F Jonas Aidoo
- G Zakai Zeigler
- G Josiah-Jordan James
- G Santiago Vescovi
SAINT PETER'S MARCH MADNESS ODDS
Saint Peter's is lumped in with over a dozen other bottom seeds with +100000 odds to contend for a National Championship win during 2024 March Madness. Whether it's the inconsistent offense, averaging under a meager 39.7 percent from the field, or making less than six three-pointers per game, the Peacocks' lucrative outright odds are only fun to admire from a distance and nothing more.
TENNESSEE MARCH MADNESS ODDS
Tennessee has the sixth-lowest odds to win March Madness at +1800 on FanDuel Sportsbook. The Volunteers' early exits during previous appearances in the Big Dance are certainly going to keep a big portion of sports bettors off of their futures line, but their offense is good enough to go on a run despite competing in a loaded Midwest Region. Staking 0.25 units on Tennessee to use their residual embarrassment as fuel is a great way to invest ahead of their first game as -21.5 favorites against the 15-seed Saint Peter's Peacocks in Round 1.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL ODDS
Matt is an avid writer, editor, and researcher. He enjoys analyzing the game within the game which is fantasy sports and sports betting. Music is another constant in his daily life. Matt loves spending time with his wife and three pets. He likes to read, listen to podcasts, and is constantly motivated to create the most accurate and engaging content in the sports betting industry.