The Kentucky Wildcats take on the Arkansas Razorbacks. Check out our college basketball odds series for our Kentucky Arkansas prediction and pick. Find how to watch Kentucky Arkansas.

The Arkansas Razorbacks made the Elite Eight in 2021 and 2022. They reached the Sweet 16 in 2023. Very few teams make the Sweet 16 in three consecutive seasons, but Arkansas did under coach Eric Musselman. The Hogs figured out a way to play their best basketball late in the season. The road was bumpy in November, December and January, but Musselman got the team pointed in the right direction, and it evolved as it went along. It seemed very likely entering this season that Arkansas would once again make the NCAA Tournament and would once again be a factor in March.

Shockingly, the Hogs made a wrong turn. Arkansas has gotten stuck this season, falling to the lower half of the SEC and playing close to .500 ball overall. The Razorbacks are not even close to the bubble. They're basically out of the running for the NCAA Tournament and would have to win eight straight games to begin to change that. Nothing about this team's performances or its trajectory suggests that Arkansas can get unstuck. For one thing, Arkansas struggles to score. The Hogs lack pure shooters who take advantage of opportunities for open shots. Second, defensive effort is uneven and inconsistent. Musselman has had a hard time putting five players on the floor who all fight equally hard and provide top-level defense and rebounding.

Here are the Kentucky-Arkansas College Basketball odds, courtesy of FanDuel.

College Basketball Odds: Kentucky-Arkansas Odds

Kentucky Wildcats: -6.5 (-102)

Arkansas Razorbacks: +6.5 (-120)

Over: 166.5 (-110)

Under: 166.5 (-110)

How To Watch Kentucky vs Arkansas

Time: 6:00 pm ET / 3:00 pm PT

TV: ESPN

Stream: fuboTV (click for a free trial)*

Why Kentucky Could Cover the Spread

Arkansas, as detailed above, is just not a good team. For whatever reason, Musselman has not been able to put the pieces together with this roster. A few players on the team care, but not enough of them, and certainly not all five on the court. Some rosters just don't mesh, and this is a roster which has fallen between the cracks for Musselman.

More to the point, Arkansas lacks elite scorers who can punish Kentucky's defense. Kentucky plays bad defense and has constantly failed to contain opponents, but Arkansas is not a team which will expose the Wildcats' most central deficiency. This is a bad matchup for Arkansas and a great one for Kentucky.

Why Arkansas Could Cover the Spread

The Hogs are desperate. They have had a miserable season and they're not a good team, but this is Kentucky, a team they love to play and love to beat. It's a game in which ESPN College GameDay will be visiting Fayetteville and Bud Walton arena. This game fits the archetype of a “Super Bowl” game in which Arkansas will put all its chips in the middle of the table and give great effort, far better than what we have typically seen from this team this season. Arkansas just has to be better in this one game, not in a series of games. It could be the one time Arkansas puts everything together against a good SEC opponent.

Final Kentucky-Arkansas Prediction & Pick

Kentucky is a weak defensive team, but Arkansas' lack of elite offense puts the Razorbacks in a bad spot. Take Kentucky.

Final Kentucky-Arkansas Prediction & Pick: Kentucky -6.5