Texas A&M at Kentucky NCAA Basketball Odds, 2025 Expert Analysis & Prediction in Week 11

No. 8 Kentucky is 4-0 vs. ranked teams this season and faces another one in No. 11 Texas A&M on Tuesday night in SEC action from Lexington.

The Cats as short favorites on the NCAAB odds in Week 11, as Aggies star Wade Taylor IV could miss another game.

How to Bet Texas A&M at Kentucky NCAA Basketball Odds & TV Info

NCAAB Moneylines: Kentucky -270 / Texas A&m +214
When: Tuesday, 7 PM ET
Where: Rupp Arena
TV: ESPN2
Stream: ESPN+

Texas A&M Basketaball Analysis

Will All-American guard Wade Taylor IV play? He sat out for the third time in the past five games on Saturday against Alabama and the Aggies had their nine-game winning streak end in a 94-88 home loss. Taylor is averaging 15.7 points, 4.8 assists, 3.3 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game this season. He was named to the Midseason Top 25 Watch List for the Wooden Award.

No. 1️⃣1️⃣ in both polls 📊#GigEm pic.twitter.com/DOUGIRrTx5

— Texas A&M Basketball (@aggiembk) January 13, 2025

Wade Taylor IV

He is one of seven power conference guards averaging 15+ points per game, while also posting more than 60 assists and fewer than 30 turnovers (27). Among P5 players scoring 15 or more points per game, Taylor ranked No. 9 nationally in assist/turnover ratio (2.33). Taylor averages 16.8 points in 26 career games against AP Top 25 opponents. His 16.8 scoring average ranks No. 3 nationally among active players with more than 20 games against ranked opponents. His four 30+ scoring games vs. ranked opponents is tied for the national lead with Villanova‘s Eric Dixon among active players. Coach Buzz Williams says Taylor’s return is up in the air.

Points Against

The 94 points allowed Saturday were the most ever Alabama had scored at College Station breaking the previous high of 74 points during the 1991-92 season. UA held a 21-7 advantage in fast break points and outrebounded A&M 54-46. The Aggies did make the most of their second-chance opportunities, doubling up Alabama in second chance points (32-16).

The Crimson Tide out-rebounded Texas A&M 55-45, a figure it had highlighted prior to the matchup, and finished the night with more assists, more 3-pointers and a better overall shooting percentage in its road win. Meanwhile, the Aggies, despite getting to the line 48 times, only converted 58 percent of their foul shots.

A&M (13-3, 2-1 SEC) trailed by as many as 15 points in the second half but used a furious rally to get within three points twice after the final media timeout. Powering the comeback were Zhuric Phelps, Pharrel Payne and Hayden Hefner, who combined for 23 points down the stretch.

Zhuric Phelps

Phelps was the team’s leading scorer for a second straight game as he scored 24 points while pulling down nine rebounds and dishing out a trio of assists. Payne contributed a career-high 23 points and matched his season high with nine rebounds, including six off the offensive glass. He earned 15 free throw attempts and made 11 from the line. Henry Coleman III logged his 16th career double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds, including five offensive boards. Hefner chipped in 16 points with five rebounds in a career-high 28 minutes of action.

Buzz Williams

“I think every coach would say that when the margin in this league is as thin as it is, you have to purge or cleanse whether the result was good or whether the result was bad,” Coach Williams said. “From a non-emotional standpoint, you have to figure out how you can diagnose what to learn, but in a quick turnaround, what can you learn that applies to the next game? We try to purge good or bad, but then we try to only take translatable learning information to the next game and the things that don’t translate, we kind of sprinkle in when we have more than one day of work prior to the game.”

Texas A&M and Tennessee are the only SEC schools that haven’t allowed more than 28 field goals made in a game this season. The two teams are No. 1 and No. 2 among SEC schools in FGM defense at 20.6 (UT) and 21.6 (TAMU). Texas A&M has earned at least 20 trips to the FT line 12 times (10-2 record).

The Record

Since March 2022, the Aggies have posted a 14-10 record against ranked teams, which is the seventh-most wins among all D1 teams in that span. The 58.3 win% ranks No. 7 among D1 teams with 20 or more games vs. ranked foes. Since the beginning of the 2021-22 season, Texas A&M has compiled a 37-30 record away from Reed Arena (road + neutral). The Aggies’ 37 wins rank No. 10 among P5 teams and just behind SEC foes Tennessee (41), Alabama (40) and Auburn (39).

Kentucky Basketaball Analysis

No. 8 Kentucky (13-3, 2-1 SEC) Kentucky has won seven straight games against AP-ranked opponents, with all seven coming against teams in the top 15, following a 95-90 win at No. 14 Mississippi State on Saturday. MSU trailed by 14 early in the second half before using a 12-0 run to cut it to 68-66. Claudell Harris’ 3 pointer with 8:17 remaining gave the Bulldogs an 80-78 lead, but it was their last lead of the game. Josh Hubbard hit a driving layup to cut it to 91-90 with two minutes remaining, but the Bulldogs were held scoreless the rest of the way.

Jaxson Robinson

UK had six players in double figures in the game, led by a season-high 27 points from Robinson. The BYU transfer made 9 of 12 from the field, including 7 of 10 from three-point range. Otega Oweh had 15 points and eight rebounds and Andrew Carr had 13 points and six rebounds. Ansley Almonor had 11 points, while Amari Williams had a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds, and he added six assists. Lamont Butler had 10 points and eight assists for the Cats.

Before joining BYU prior to the 2022-23 campaign, Robinson spent two years in the SEC, first at Texas A&M (2020-21) and then Arkansas (2021-22). Across those two seasons, he combined to appear in just 30 games, starting eight times — four each for the Aggies and Razorbacks. Robinson has been anticipating this matchup for quite some time.

“What I learned (at Texas A&M)? I learned a lot. I was young. I was 17 when I got into college,” he said Oct. 15. “My first two years, I honestly don’t count. I didn’t play (much). I mean, I learned a lot of different information from a lot of good guys, good vets, but I didn’t play a lot of minutes. So (I’m) just coming back (into the SEC) with a chip on my shoulder.”

Lights out night for @Robinsonjaxx 🌟

27 PTS (9-12 FG, 7-10 3FG) pic.twitter.com/VZscfyqPKo

— Kentucky Men’s Basketball (@KentuckyMBB) January 13, 2025

All nine players who saw action for the Wildcats scored, and seven of them hit 3-pointers in a performance that showcased the congruence of a roster that first-year coach Mark Pope assembled through the transfer portal.

Points Record

Kentucky scored at least 95 points for the seventh time this season and the second time in three games in conference play. UK is 7-0 in these games The Wildcats were 16-of-32 from beyond the 3-point arc. The 16 made threes were the second most in a game this season for UK, and the most ever by the team against Mississippi State. It marks the second time this season that UK has shot at least 50 percent from deep (Louisville). The Wildcats are 10-0 on the year when making double-digit 3s.

Six players scored in double figures for the Wildcats for the fourth time this season on Saturday. UK is 4-0 in these games. Robinson’s seven made 3-pointers Saturday tied the most ever by a Kentucky player vs. MSU. Five different players have led the Wildcats in scoring on multiple occasions through 16 games.

Mark Pope

Pope has seen him play well over the years, but given the circumstances with what he had been through mentally and the build-up, he believed Saturday was Robinson at his best. He showed up when it mattered and when his team needed him most.

“When you get a guy, a young guy, who can get himself to that place, then you see performances like tonight — I’m telling you, it’s thrilling to watch. I’m so happy for him,” Pope said after his 200th career coaching win Saturday. “He’s done this before, but he hasn’t done it on this big of a stage. He hasn’t done it in this league, this way, against a ranked team on the road. But he sure has now.”

Lamont Butler

Butler has been the team’s leading scorer through three games in SEC play, averaging 16.3 points per game in these contests while shooting 51.4 percent from the floor to go along with 6.3 assists, 2.7 steals and 2.3 rebounds. Oweh leads the Wildcats in scoring at 15.6 points per game overall. He is the only player who has scored in double digits in every game.

Kentucky’s four wins over top 15 teams this season ranks first in the nation.

Texas A&M vs Kentucky Series History

Kentucky holds a 13-6 advantage in the all-time series that began in the 1941-42 season. Five of the Aggies’ six wins over the Wildcats have come as SEC brethren. In SEC play, the Wildcats hold an 11-5 advantage. Under Buzz Williams, the Aggies are 2-3 vs. the Wildcats. A&M won both matchups last season.

POLL ALERT: Auburn rises to No. 1 in men's AP Top 25 after Tennessee loses; Georgia cracks rankings for first time since 2011.

Full poll: https://t.co/ZJG5mgWZhI pic.twitter.com/n9yu6KcTAz

— AP Top 25 (@AP_Top25) January 13, 2025

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