Notre Dame vs. Kentucky: Betting odds, TV channel, prediction

Kentucky looks to get back on track against Notre Dame today.

The start of the college basketball season has proven to be a tough one for the Kentucky Wildcats. John Calipari’s team hasn’t won since its first game, dropping three games in a row in the process, including a disappointing loss to Kansas in the Champions Classic and an embarrassing blowout at Georgia Tech last Saturday.

There is no doubt that the condensed preseason has impacted young teams like the Wildcats, who have fallen out of the Top 25 thanks to this losing streak. The absence of Keion Brooks due to injury means that Calipari has to run out a rotation full of players that weren’t in the program a year ago, making it difficult to build a cohesive team.

Expectations weren’t nearly as high for Notre Dame, which has been in a rebuild since losing in the Elite Eight of the 2016 NCAA Tournament. Mike Brey’s team has been competitive in all three of their games, squeaking out an eight-point win against Detroit-Mercy while both of the Fighting Irish’s losses have come to Big Ten foes.

Notre Dame definitely could have beaten Ohio State in the Big Ten-ACC Challenge, holding an 11-point lead in the second half before the Buckeyes rallied to win. It will be interesting to see how the Fighting Irish will use what they learned in the Ohio State game to try and take down Kentucky today.

This game is of vital importance for Kentucky, which needs a win to stabilize with more rough non-conference games ahead. A loss here could mean major problems for the Wildcats in the coming weeks.

How to watch and bet on Notre Dame at Kentucky

• Date: Saturday, Dec. 12
• Time: 12:00 p.m. ET
• Location: Lexington, KY
• Venue: Rupp Arena
• TV: CBS
• Live Stream: CBS All Access
• Odds: Kentucky -6.5 (FanDuel)
• Prediction: Kentucky 72, Notre Dame 58

For more NCAA basketball news, analysis, opinion and features, check out more from the FanSided college basketball section to stay on top of the latest action.