TennesseeTennessee vs. Iowa StateIowa State Pick Center

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ML SPREAD TOTAL
TennesseeTennessee 68
-145
-2.5
(-112)
O 145
(-110)
Iowa StateIowa State 45
+125
+2.5
(-108)
U 145
(-110)
NCAABNCAAB
FINAL (1/27/2018)
Time: 4:00 PM EST  The last five ranked nonconference teams to visit Iowa State at Hilton Coliseum left unhappy. No. 22 Tennessee is up next for the Cyclones on Saturday in one of several intriguing matchups in the Big 12/SEC Challenge. Iowa State failed to build momentum off of its big win over then-No. 8 Texas Tech last Saturday. The Cyclones lost 73-57 at Texas on Monday and are now 2-6 in Big 12 play. They'll have their hands full with the surging Volunteers, who have won five of six in the rugged SEC." We're going to have to play really, really well," Iowa State coach Steve Prohm told reporters this week. "I love the challenge." Tennessee (14-5, 5-3 SEC) bounced back from a loss at Missouri with back-to-back SEC wins, including 67-62 victory over Vanderbilt on Tuesday. The Volunteers have held their last four opponents to 63 points or less and saw their starting guard bust out of a shooting slump in the win over the Commodores. Jordan Bowden scored 19 points, connecting on 5 of 7 3-pointers against Vanderbilt." What I've been waiting on for the past two games, finally seeing one go in," Bowden told reporters after the victory, which kept the Volunteers within two games of first-place Auburn. The re-emergence of Bowden from the outside will only help the Volunteers' bread-and-butter inside game, featuring Grant Williams and Admiral Schofield. Williams leads Tennessee in scoring (16.5 points per game) and rebounding (6.2 per game). Schofield is second (12.8 points, 5.8 rebounds) on the team in both categories. After holding Texas Tech to just 34 percent shooting from the field in an impressive win, Iowa State (11-8, 2-6 Big 12) struggled with Texas big man Mo Bamba in Monday's loss. Bamba scored 24 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in a dominating performance. Williams and Schofield aren't nearly Bamba's size (6-foot-11), but they're a physical presence with effective mid-range games. Iowa State, which lost seven seniors from last year's team that reached the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament, is much more perimeter-oriented than Tennessee. Four Cyclones are averaging double-figures, led by freshman guard Lindell Wigginton. Donovan Jackson, Nick Babb and Cameron Lard also are averaging double figures for Iowa State. Prohm said he didn't believe Saturday's game would come down to matchups or X's and O's, though." If we win the game Saturday, it's because we play with greater toughness and greater energy," Prohm said. The Big 12/SEC Challenge features 11 games on Saturday between two of the top conferences in the nation. Data analyst Ken Pomeroy has the Big 12 ranked No. 1, and the SEC No. 4. In its only game against SEC competition this season, Iowa State lost to Missouri 74-59 to open the campaign. Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said the event isn't really about conference bragging rights but is happy that it brings attention to the two conferences." I'm just glad this weekend people are going to be talking about Big 12 and SEC basketball," Barnes said this week." The challenge is good," Barnes added, "but there's a lot of basketball to be played."

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