The college basketball matchup between the St. John’s Red Storm and Kentucky Wildcats will take place on Saturday in Atlanta as part of the CBS Sports Classic. Both teams enter with seven wins so far this season and will look to add to that total with conference play looming. Here, I have broken this game down from all possible angles and you can find my St. John's vs Kentucky prediction before tip-off from Atlanta.
St. John’s enters this neutral-site showdown with a 7-3 record and a three-game winning streak, including a decisive 79-66 win over DePaul to open Big East play. Zuby Ejiofor has been a force on the interior, leading the team in rebounds and blocks while averaging nearly 14 points per game. Joson Sanon has provided both perimeter shooting and defensive energy. Coach Rick Pitino has challenged Bryce Hopkins to reaffirm his role as a primary offensive option before this matchup with the Wildcats.
Kentucky enters this game at 7-4 and has dealt with inconsistency in its non-conference slate. Kentucky is relying heavily on Otega Oweh’s scoring and Malachi Moreno’s rebounding, while Jaland Lowe continues to progress from a shoulder issue that limited much of his season. The Wildcats’ ability to control the boards and push transition scoring could help them break down the St. John's defense, but their three-point shooting remains an area of concern.
Both of these teams enter this game on winning streaks. St. John's has won three games in a row coming into this contest, while Kentucky has won two straight games. But only one of these teams will keep its winning streak alive after this contest.
Score Projection: St. John’s 75 – Kentucky 74
Win Probability: St. John’s 59%, Kentucky 41%
This is a neutral-site game, but only technically. The game is being played right in the heart of SEC country and we should see Kentucky's fans well-represented at this contest. I'm going to take the points with the Wildcats and expect them to hold serve in front of a crowd that should be largely supportive of them. It would not surprise me at all if Kentucky managed to win this game outright in Atlanta.
Jay Sanin is the GM and Head of Sports at ATS.io. He has been writing about sports gambling since 2013, handicapping tens of thousands of sporting events. He plays sides and totals aggressively across most sports and is more selective in player prop markets. He does his own modeling across most sports, and his family is jealous of how much time he spends on his precious spreadsheets.
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