College GameDay picks Alabama over Kentucky in a SWEEP

Does the College GameDay crew of Andraya Carter, Jay Williams, Seth Greenberg and Jay Bilas like Kentucky in Tuscaloosa? That answer is a hard no. In fact, the panel of ESPN analysts picked Alabama in a clean sweep ahead of the Wildcats’ matchup against the Crimson Tide on Saturday.

The reasoning is obvious, combining the injury concerns for Kentucky with the two-game losing streak for Nate Oats and Alabama. Add in the home-court advantage and all four believe the blue and white will be returning to Lexington with a loss.

Carter: “Big Blue missing some pieces, I don’t see Alabama losing three straight. I go Alabama.”

Williams: “I think Nate Oats has this team ready considering they lost the last two games in the manner they did. You have to defend home court in the SEC.”

Greenberg: “No Jaxson, no Butler actually helps Alabama win this game because they can play that smaller backcourt. They defend the 3-point shot and they win.”

Bilas: “Yeah, I like Alabama in this one.”

It’s a clean sweep for the College GameDay crew: Alabama over Kentuckyhttps://t.co/thKQmtgv6p pic.twitter.com/Os3pRLwCAt

— Jack Pilgrim (@JackPilgrimKSR) February 22, 2025

Kentucky opened as a 7.5-point underdog at Alabama with the spread only growing ahead of tip-off this afternoon, now sitting at 11.5 points in favor of the Crimson Tide.

KenPom and Bart Torvik both project wins for Alabama, the former going with a 94-89 victory and the latter rolling with a 98-89 final score. ESPN’s BPI likes the Tide by 5.4 points while giving the home team a 70.4 percent chance to pull off the win.

The College GameDay crew clearly agrees. Now it’s on the Wildcats to prove them all wrong in Tuscaloosa.

As for what’s ahead, GameDay announced earlier in the show it would not be heading to Lexington next week when Kentucky hosts No. 1 Auburn at Rupp Arena. Instead, Bilas and company will head to Gainesville for the top 10 matchup between No. 7 Texas A&M and No. 2 Florida.