Crimson Tide On Four-Game Win Streak
The No. 4 Alabama Crimson Tide go for a fifth straight win when they face the No. 15 Arkansas Razorbacks in a key SEC matchup on Wednesday night. Alabama is coming off a rout of Kentucky on Saturday and is in second place in the SEC, a half-game behind No. 5 Tennessee. Arkansas has dropped two of its three league matchups, including a road loss to Auburn on Saturday, and is tied with three other teams for eighth. This showdown should be intense throughout, so to help with your betting online, check out our in-depth preview of the game.
Let’s check the latest college basketball odds, stats, injury reports, and college basketball lines for Alabama vs Arkansas. We’ve plenty of NCAA basketball odds for you to consider.
Alabama Rising In National Rankings
The Alabama Crimson Tide may be the class of the SEC this season, especially after their rout of Kentucky in a showdown game on Saturday. Alabama overwhelmed the Wildcats, who are usually the face of the conference, and moved up three spots in Top 25 following the win.
“I can’t say enough about our guys and how hard they played on defense and how locked in to the scouting report they were,” Alabama coach Nate Oats said after Saturday’s win. “I thought (Mark) Sears was unbelievable. He got in there and made a bunch of tough plays and rebounds.”
Sears had a great all-around game against the Wildcats, finishing with 16 points, six steals, six rebounds and four assists. The junior guard is averaging 14.7 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.8 assists while shooting 41.9% from 3-point range.
Freshman Brandon Miller led the way with 19 points and seven rebounds in the victory. Miller paces the Tide in scoring at 19.1 points per game while chipping in 8.5 rebounds and 1.9 assists, connecting on 43.5% from beyond the arc.
Arkansas Needs Turnaround Victory
The Arkansas Razorbacks have been struggling in SEC play, though it doesn’t help that they’re dealing with injuries to key players. Freshman guard Nick Smith Jr. (12.8 points) is expected to be out until the end of this month with a knee injury, while sophomore forward Trevon Brazile (11.8 points, six rebounds) has been lost for the season with a torn ACL.
With those pieces missing, the Razorbacks are going to need more from junior guard Ricky Council IV. Council leads the team in scoring at 18.1 points per game and scored 25 in the team’s only SEC win against Missouri. But he’s averaged just 13.5 points in the team’s two conference losses.
Freshman guard Anthony Black has been a consistent contributor, averaging 12.5 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game. Black had 23 points, seven rebounds and four assists against Auburn.
Senior forward Makhi Mitchell helps the Razorbacks with 5.7 rebounds per game and averages 7.5 points on 65.3% shooting. He’ll need to be able to hang in against a very tall Alabama front line.
Alabama vs Arkansas Game Injuries
Alabama vs Arkansas Head-To-Head
The Alabama Crimson Tide have had some success against the Arkansas Razorbacks of late, winning two of the last three matchups. Those victories came after Arkansas had a six-game win streak in the rivalry from 2015 to 2020.
Both of Alabama’s recent wins have come at home, as the Crimson Tide haven’t won in Fayetteville, Ark., since February 2012. The college basketball lines for Wednesday’s game are giving the slightest of edges to the Tide to finally break that string with a win.
Alabama vs Arkansas Game Information
- Game: Alabama (13-2, 3-0 SEC) vs Arkansas (12-3, 1-2)
- Location: Bud Walton Arena, Fayetteville, Ark.
- Day/Time: Wednesday, Jan. 11, 7 p.m. ET
- Alabama vs Arkansas Live Stream: TBS.com
Alabama vs Arkansas Betting Lines
Alabama vs Arkansas Picks & Prediction
At full strength, the Arkansas Razorbacks would be a solid challenge for the Alabama Crimson Tide. But unfortunately, Arkansas is playing short-handed right now, which will be the difference against a deep Alabama squad.
When doing your college basketball betting, take Alabama to win and cover on the road.
Alabama is listed at -120 in our Vegas college basketball lines. This means that if you wager $100 on the Crimson Tide, you have a chance to win $83. Arkansas is +100, offering a chance to win $100 on a $100 wager.
The implied probability attached to the betting lines gives Alabama a 54.55% chance to win, with the Razorbacks at 50.00%.