Kentucky vs Missouri Prediction 3/8/25 College Basketball Picks

The Kentucky Wildcats and the Missouri Tigers meet Saturday in college basketball action from the Mizzou Arena. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Kentucky vs. Missouri prediction.

Matchup History

These two teams have yet to meet this season, but last year, on January 9th, 2024 in Lexington, Kentucky picked up a 90-77 win, making it five straight head-to-head meetings without back-to-back winners in this head-to-head series.

Kentucky Recap

The Kentucky Wildcats come into this one fresh off of a 95-64 win over LSU last time out to sit at 20-10 on the year.

Wildcats Looking For Consistency Entering Conference Tournament

Otega Oweh leads the Wildcats in scoring with 15.7 PPG along with 4.7 RPG while Koby Brea has 11.2 PPG with 3.2 RPG. Lamont Butler’s added 12.4 PPG with a team-high 4.5 APG to lead Kentucky in assists and Jaxson Robinson has added 13 PPG with 3.5 RPG as well this season but is likely out for the year with an injury. Amari Williams has 11 PPG with a team-high 8.8 RPG as the Wildcats’ leading rebounder, while Andrew Carr has added 10.1 PPG with 4.5 RPG to cap off the group of double-digit scorers for Kentucky up to this point in the season. As a team, Kentucky is averaging 85.3 PPG on 48.3% shooting from the field, 37.3% from three, and 73.7% from the foul line this season.

Why the Kentucky Wildcats will win

• Kentucky has won 27 of its last 35 games when playing with a rest advantage.
• Missouri has lost three of its last four games.

Missouri Recap

The Missouri Tigers come into this game looking to bounce back from a 96-84 loss to the Oklahoma Sooners last time out.

Tigers Looking To Rebound From Back-To-Back Losses

Caleb Grill leads the Tigers in scoring with 14.4 PPG along with 3.8 RPG while Mark Mitchell has 14.1 PPG with 4.6 RPG and 2 APG and Tamar Bates has 13.1 PPG with 2.7 RPG to cap off the trio of double-digit scorers for Missouri so far this season. Anthony Robinson II has 9.4 PPG with 3.1 RPG and a team-high 3.5 APG to lead the Tigers in the assist department while Tony Perkins has 8.1 PPG with 2.5 APG and Trent Pierce has 7.1 PPG with 3.4 RPG as well so far this season. Josh Gray also has a team-high 5.1 RPG to lead Missouri on the glass up to this point in the year. As a team, Missouri is averaging 84.6 PPG on 48.9% shooting from the field, 37.3% from three, and 72.8% from the foul line this season.

Why the Missouri Tigers will win

• Missouri has won 18 of its last 19 games at Mizzou Arena.
• Kentucky has lost each of its last four road games following a home win.

Total Points Facts

• Each of Missouri’s last 13 day games against Conference opponents at Mizzou Arena have produced a total of 167 or fewer points.
• Each of Kentucky’s last four day games against AP-ranked opponents have produced a total of 172+ points.

Kentucky vs. Missouri Prediction

I’m on the over in this game. I do lean towards Missouri at home, but Kentucky can score regardless of where this team plays, as they scored 83 points in back-to-back road games. On the other side, Missouri has gone 18-1 at home and has surpassed 100+ points in back-to-back home games this to me feels like one of those games where one team sails into the 90s and the other is in the high 80s as well, and a game that finishes in the high-170s at least here. Give me the over.

Chris Ruffolo's Pick: Over 169.5