Auburn and Alabama are set to square off on the court rather than in the Iron Bowl we are all used to seeing. It's time to continue our college basketball odds series with an Auburn-Alabama prediction and pick.

Nobody predicted this, but the Auburn Tigers have found a way to be the No. 4 ranked team in the nation. It's been a phenomenal start to the year for the Tigers who have gone 14-1 to start the season. They started out the year ranked 22nd but worked their way up to four with 11 straight wins. Their biggest win of the season came against No. 16 LSU where they won by 15. They lost their only other game against a ranked opponent this year which came in game four, where they lost to UCONN 115-109 in double overtime.

It's been an up-and-down season for the Crimson Tide. They are coming off of a loss to unranked Missouri, after starting the season off pretty hot. The highlight of the season came in early December when they knocked off No. 3 Gonzaga 91-82. They moved up to No. 6 in the nation until they lost to unranked Memphis 92-78, followed by unranked Davidson 79-78. They are now ranked 24th and will stay in the rankings with a win. With a loss, there is no way the committee keeps a five-loss team in the rankings, even with the win over Gonzaga.

Here are the Auburn-Alabama college basketball odds, courtesy of FanDuel. 

College Basketball Odds: Auburn-Alabama Odds

Auburn: +3 (-110)

Alabama: -3 (-110)

Over: 156.5 (-110)

Under: 156.5 (-110)

*Watch College Basketball Games LIVE with fuboTV (click for free trial)

Why Auburn Could Cover The Spread

I think Auburn has a great chance of covering this spread. They seem like the better team this year even though Alabama has beaten some good teams as well. Alabama has certainly had the tougher schedule, but I don't think it's fair to give Auburn three points on the road here. Auburn is the far better defensive team. They give up nine fewer points per game than Alabama does, but they score just two points less per game. These two teams are pretty even offensively, but Auburn has the edge on defense. That is what it's going to come down to, can Auburn continue to defend well against Alabama's top-scoring threats. Jaden Shackelford leads the Crimson Tide with 16 points per game. It will be on Auburn to defend him and not let him take over the game. If that happens, then Auburn should be right in the thick of things late in the second half.

Why Alabama Could Cover The Spread

Alabama is fresh off of a horrible loss to a sub-par Missouri team. It's difficult to understand why they played so badly, but the truth is that they just couldn't defend at all. You can't be giving up 92 points to a team with a losing record at the time. The last few games have been difficult for Bama to get back in their groove. They desperately need to improve their defense because Auburn can score just as easily as Bama can. If they can force turnovers and not allow second-chance points to Auburn, then Bama will have a chance to win this game. They need to really get it going now because five losses this early in the year could be hurting them later in the season.

Final Auburn-Alabama Prediction & Pick

Auburn is 11-4 against the spread and Bama is 7-8 against the spread. This isn't an easy game to pick, but I am going to go with Auburn to “upset” Alabama on the road here. I believe Auburn is the better team and they will prove it Tuesday night.

Final Auburn-Alabama Prediction & Pick: Auburn +3 (-110)