Auburn vs Alabama Picks and Odds

• The Auburn Tigers (12-13, 6-10 SEC) take on the Alabama Crimson Tide (19-6, 14-2 SEC) on Tuesday night
• Auburn could be without guard Sharife Cooper who is questionable with an ankle injury
• See the odds, spread, analysis, and best bet, below

The Auburn Tigers will take another shot at an improbable win when they visit the hated Alabama Crimson Tide at the Coleman Coliseum in Tuscaloosa, Alabama Tuesday (7pm ET).

This series has been neck-and-neck recently, with the schools splitting the last eight meetings. Current odds are showing Alabama as an 10.5-point favorite this time around.

Auburn vs Alabama Odds

Odds as of March 1st at FanDuel

Auburn didn’t look so great without Sharife Cooper against Florida last Tuesday, losing 74-57 to the Gators. Whatever Bruce Pearl said after that game worked because they beat the Tennessee Volunteers 77-72 in their next game Saturday.

Alabama was able to answer a loss in their last game as well. They took an 81-66 beating at the hands of Arkansas on Tuesday, only to answer the bell Saturday by beating up on Mississippi State 64-59.

Auburn Made a Statement

Bettors faded the Tigers on Saturday agains the Tennessee Volunteers because of fears that Sharife Cooper would not play. Auburn opened as 5.5-points underdogs and by tip-off, the line had swelled to 8.5. Seemingly no one gave Auburn a chance, which proved to be a mistake. Not only did they cover, they won the game outright.

W.

Focused and not finished. pic.twitter.com/GcAnSeX5tj

— Auburn Basketball (@AuburnMBB) February 28, 2021

TheTigers needed to bring energy from everyone in this game without their leader and they got exactly what they needed. Allen Flanigan assumed the role of top scorer for the Tigers, pouring in 23 points to go along with seven rebounds. All five of the Tigers’ starters reached double-digits in points to pace the attack.

Alabama Takes the SEC Regular Season Crown

It’s been a long time since the Crimson Tide were SEC champs in basketball. Almost 20 years to be exact. But with their 64-59 win Saturday over Mississippi State, Alabama has clinched the 2021 SEC regular season title.

🚨𝕄𝕒𝕩 𝔼𝕗𝕗𝕠𝕣𝕥 | 𝕊𝕖𝕒𝕤𝕠𝕟 𝟚 | 𝔼𝕡𝕚𝕤𝕠𝕕𝕖 𝟛🚨

The SEC Championship Returns to Tuscaloosa🏆#RollTide | #BlueCollarBasketball pic.twitter.com/MWktEowxGd

— Alabama Men’s Basketball (@AlabamaMBB) February 28, 2021

Following a loss to Arkansas, Alabama wasted no time establishing dominance in this one. They took a 34-21 lead into the locker rooms at halftime and held off a late Bulldog surge in the second half. Jahvon Quinerly led Alabama in scoring with 19 points off the bench.

Best Betting Angle

Narrative street is a tough place for bettors to live. On one hand, everything seems to make sense and on the other, everything could be explained away by just being noise. In this case, the question will be whether or not you want to back a team that just celebrated like they won the national title after their last game.

It’s a valid concern depending on which side of narrative street you reside.

Back on 🔝.. Time to Celebrate!#RollTide  | #BlueCollarBasketball pic.twitter.com/rEu2eUzaeF

— Alabama Men’s Basketball (@AlabamaMBB) February 28, 2021

Both teams are top 50 in the nation in terms of pace, so a track meet could break out.  In the first matchup, the two teams didn’t even shoot 44% from the floor and still hung 184 points. The total was 152.5 that night, has clearly been adjusted this time around and sits about where it should be.

As for the side, the Tigers have been very careful with bettors’ money in big games on the road. Just in the last month, they’ve covered at Baylor and at Kentucky which is no easy feat. This time around they are getting an opponent with the horizon in mind instead of this particular game, which works to their benefit. Auburn could easily cover this inflated number if the Crimson Tide are feeling the effects of a hangover.

The pick: Auburn +10.5 (-110)