The story this week isn’t about Auburn basketball reaching the #1 spot in the AP Top 25. Instead, it’s been hijacked by Jesse Newell, who voted the Tigers #2 based on a voting algorithm that downplayed actual on-court results.
No matter. That bears no effect on tonight’s game.
You see, Tom Crean’s Georgia Bulldogs were always going to come into this one being counted out, much like Auburn’s football team was to the eventual 2021 National Champion Dawgs back in October.
And, in all likelihood, the result will be the same. The underdog is in for a night.
UGA has some of the SEC’s worst losses this season as a conference, with turnover problems undoing them against Wofford, poor shooting spoiling their shot to compete against George Mason, holes in the perimeter defense opening the doors for East Tennessee State in a razor-thin win for the Buccaneers, and Gardner-Webb simply having their number on both ends of the floor.
Those are just a handful of the Dawgs’ losses overall as a 5-12 bottom-feeder sporting the only losing record in the SEC.
The combined effect of an underwhelming visiting team that happens to be a school rival, plus the sting of being wrongfully robbed of the #1 seed in the nation, and the roar of a Jungle with something to prove could make this a long night for barking basketball fans from the Peach State.
Let’s take a look at the one-sided odds for this expected slaughter via WynnBet Sportsbook:
Georgia vs. Auburn basketball Odds, Spread and Total
Spread:
Auburn: -22 (-110)
Georgia: +22 (-110)
Total:
153.5 (Over -110/Under -110)
Georgia vs. Auburn prediction
Hell hath no fury like an Auburn family scorned.
I’m not seeing a path to Georgia having any semblance of a shot on Wednesday night. Bruce Pearl and co. are not about to ease up on the gas pedal after being robbed what is rightfully theirs. Especially not with Georgia in town.
Take that absurd spread for an SEC matchup. The Dawgs are miles behind the rest of the conference and the Tigers could prove against Kentucky Saturday that they are the creme de la creme of it.
They already are if we go by the motto: “good teams win, great teams cover”. There’s not been a single spread left uncovered in 2022 by Auburn basketball.