Auburn vs. Tennessee NCAA Matchup: A Critical Analysis

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00:00Let's start with Auburn, Tennessee, five-and-a-half point spread, total sits in this one at 140-and-a-half,

00:06Coach. Auburn, Tennessee, huge game. You know, the Tigers might need this for the number one

00:12overall seed. What do you see here between the Tigers and the Vols? I see two teams that are

00:17going to want to make this a half-court game, so I'm looking at this game going under. I think

00:21this game will be really tightly played, so I'm going under with this game. I think it's gonna

00:25be really, really close. Yeah, I lean to Auburn here. I like Auburn minus the points. I think

00:30they got the one bad game out of their system again yesterday against Ole Miss. I'm just not

00:35sold big picture on Rick Barnes. I know they do this every year. They make a run, you know. They

00:41dominate in the regular season. They make a run potentially in the SEC Championship, you know,

00:46tourney, and then battle out in the first couple of rounds of the NCAA and never live up to

00:52expectations. Problem for me is even though you look at last night, Lanier with 23

00:58and Geiser with 19, right? Yeah. Geiger. The problem, 68% from the free throw line.

01:05They still allow Texas back in that game. That's a problem for me. I would lay it. I think Auburn

01:11dominates this game. Might be if you're gonna back Tennessee for me, I would do it from a first-hand

01:16perspective, but I just think Auburn in the end has way too much. Yeah, I like Tennessee here. I

01:21like Tennessee to win this game before the tournament started. It's why I bet them. I felt

01:24that they would be able to. I think the way Auburn is struggling is perfect for Tennessee. Like if

01:32Auburn right now was, you know, just a wide open door defensively, that could be a little bit more

01:38challenging for Tennessee to take advantage of. This is a team that's out of sync offensively,

01:43and I think you're going to see Tennessee step up in that way, which is why I'm, you know, I

01:49initially was going to bet the over simply on a by-low spot, but it moves so much now. You know,

01:54a team total on Tennessee could make a little bit more sense. I picked Tennessee to win this

01:58tournament. Need them to get the job done here against Auburn. If they do, they'll play the

02:02winner of Alabama and Florida. For me, pre-tournament, if the Crimson Tide got through

02:07Kentucky, they were also going to get through Florida. Step one done. I think they get step

02:13two done as well. I know we're kind of crisscross reversal here, Lacey. I think Alabama, though,

02:19offensively is going to be able to extend on Florida. The Gators, their offense is incredible.

02:26It feels as if they win with their defense. It's where they establish their leads in a lot of these

02:30basketball games. I don't think that's going to be the case here against Bama. I like the Crimson

02:35Tide. Yeah, I'm going the other way. I'm just going with the team that I believe is just a

02:39little bit more consistent, and that is the Florida Gators. We talked about it. They've won

02:43four straight by 14-plus per game. I just like them a little bit better defensively. Coach, the way

02:49they shut down Missouri in the second half basically held them in check, less than 50%

02:54shooting. To me, that's the difference. Alabama might shoot lights out, and if that continues,

02:59then they deserve it, but I think Florida potentially is the best team in the SEC

03:03right here, right now. I liked Alabama before the tournament started, and I'm not coming off

03:08it now. People, as we sit there, we knock NATO in their defensive philosophy. Do you know they're

03:1526 in defensive efficiency? I think that's something that people don't realize. Because

03:20they play so much in pace, I think people forget to realize that they're actually much better

03:26defensively because of Cliff O'Moore that allows Grant Nelson to move over to the floor. To me,

03:32I like Alabama plus the points. I think Alabama wins outright.

03:35To your point, though, there's only one team who has a top 40 tempo and a better defense

03:43than Alabama. Alabama, we know, has the number one tempo in college basketball.

03:49A credit to New Mexico, by the way. Fifth in tempo, 19th in defense.

03:52Very impressive what they've been able to do in the Mountain West.

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