Best College Basketball Prop Bets for Oakland vs. Kentucky in NCAA Tournament First Round
By Reed Wallach
Kentucky begins its quest for a National Championship against Oakland in the 3/14 matchup in the South Region.
The Wildcats have been arguably the best offense in the country this season, paced by incredible shot-making from the likes of Reed Sheppard, Rob Dillingham, and Antonio Reeves, but have been a suspect defense all season as head coach John Calipari continues to tinker with his rotations.
How can Kentucky's all-offense, no-defense approach lead to bets in the player prop market? I have you covered below!
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Best College Basketball Player Props for Oakland vs. Kentucky
- Antonio Reeves OVER 2.5 Three's Made
- Reed Sheppard OVER 4.5 Assists
- Trey Townsend OVER 25.5 Points and Rebounds
Antonio Reeves OVER 2.5 Three's Made
A dead-eye three-point shooter, Reeves is drilling 44% of his shots from beyond the arc on nearly six attempts per game.
The Wildcats will face an Oakland team that plays plenty of zone defense, which can lead to plenty of open looks from the perimeter for Kentucky, which of course helps Reeves causes. Ball movement will be key for UK, and Reeves should continue to play north of 31 minutes in the NCAA Tournament.
In a game that has a total in the 160's, Reeves is likely going to get his fair share of threes up against Oakland's zone.
Reed Sheppard OVER 4.5 Assists
As indicated above, this game is likely going to feature plenty of points and despite coming off the bench, Sheppard might be the most impactful player on the Kentucky roster.
The freshman is a 50% three-point shooter and is an incredibly instinctual defender with fantastic defense. Most importantly, Sheppard is a willing passer. Given the stakes of this game, I expect Sheppard to see a high workload.
When he played 30 or more minutes in the regular season, Sheppard had four or more assists in 13 of the 15 games. I believe that given the total and the likely minute load, I'll take his over in assists as Kentucky looks to navigate the Oakland zone.
Trey Townsend OVER 25.5 Points and Rebounds
Townsend, a 6'6" big man may be undersized against the prolific size of Kentucky, but don't sleep on junior forward in this matchup, who can play both inside and out.
Averaging nearly 17 points per game and seven rebounds per game, Townsend has been prone to having big games, most notably in the Horizon League Tournament Finals, scoring 38 points and grabbing 11 rebounds against Milwaukee.
Of course, Kentucky is a whole different challenge, but with the Wildcats inability to stick to rollers in the pick-and-roll, the Golden Grizzlies may look to attack with Townsend in this way and help rack up some fouls on a vulnerable Kentucky frontcourt.
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Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.