One of the four remaining unbeaten teams in college basketball takes the floor Wednesday night, as No. 10 Vanderbilt (16-0) travels to Austin for an SEC matchup against Texas (10-6).
Mark Byington and the Commodores are one win away from the program’s best start in school history. The Longhorns are fresh off an upset of No. 18 Alabama and will look to spoil Vandy’s unblemished streak.
Vanderbilt opened as a 7.5-point favorite, but that line has since narrowed to 4.5 points a few hours before tipoff, per DraftKings Sportsbook.
Vanderbilt vs. Texas: Odds, prediction
The underlying theme of Vanderbilt’s season has been the sophomore breakthrough from starting point guard Tyler Tanner.
After a modest freshman campaign in which he averaged 5.7 points and 1.9 assists, Tanner has upped his production to 17.3 points, 5.4 assists, 3.6 rebounds, and 2.6 steals per game.
Texas guard Jordan Pope is likely to draw Tanner on defense, making for a solid guard matchup. Pope tied a season-high 28 points in the Longhorns’ recent win over Alabama and was a part of the Texas squad that defeated Vanderbilt last season in the SEC Tournament.
Joining Pope in the Longhorns backcourt is Xavier transfer Dailyn Swain, who leads the team in scoring (15.8) and rebounding (7.1). Swain spent two seasons with head coach Sean Miller as a member of the Musketeers before joining him in the SEC.
Miller has challenged his team to play harder after an underwhelming 0-2 start in conference play, and it worked as Texas took down Alabama. However, the Longhorns’ 106.2 Defensive rating still ranks only 117th nationally, according to KenPom.
This bodes well for the Commodores, whose offense averages 93 points per night and ranks fifth in offensive efficiency per KenPom. Coach Byington added Duke Miles in the transfer portal, and his experience has meshed well with sharpshooter Tyler Nickel and glass-cleaning big Devin McGlockton.
Betting on College Basketball?
Overall, Vandy has its fair share of quality road and neutral-site wins, defeating VCU, St. Mary’s, and UCF. This Commodore team is deep and talented.
Texas is battle-tested, but aside from the win against Alabama, it has losses to No. 3 UConn, No. 6 Duke, and No. 24 Tennessee. In all three defeats, their defensive intensity was lacking.
Trap games can be deadly, but with a shot at school history, the Commodores should have enough firepower to escape Austin victorious.
The Play: Vanderbilt moneyline (-190, BetMGM) | Vanderbilt Team Total Points Over 85.5 (-120, DraftKings)
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