Kentucky is the heavy favorite vs. Nicholls in season opener

Oddsmakers have spoken and, as expected, Kentucky is a heavy favorite vs. Nicholls in the season opener. The spread is Kentucky -29.5 for tonight’s matchup at Rupp Arena on BetMGM. The total is 152.5 points, with Kentucky’s team total set at 91.5 points.

The game vs. Nicholls is the first of the BBN United Tipoff Classic (presented by Kentucky Tourism). The Colonels are in year three under Tevon Saddler and have won 20+ games in back-to-back seasons. That said, they return only three players from last year’s squad that finished 20-13, 13-7 in Southland Conference games: Jaylen Searles (6.5 points per game), Trae English (6.1 ppg), and Sincere Malone (5.6 ppg).

Kentucky is 101-21 in season openers, 45-4 at Rupp Arena. Mark Pope memorably won his first season-opener as Kentucky’s head coach by 41 points, 103-62, vs. Wright State a year ago.

Want to look further into the future? Kentucky is tied with Duke as the third betting favorite to win the national championship behind Purdue and Houston.

• Purdue +800
• Houston +900
• Duke +1300
• Kentucky +1300
• UConn +1400
• Florida +1400
• Michigan +1600
• St. John’s +1600
• Texas Tech +1800
• BYU +2000
• Arkansas +2500
• Kansas +2500
• Louisville +2500
• Arizona +2500
• Illinois +2500

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Kentucky vs. Nicholls: How to Watch, Listen

• Tipoff: 7:00 p.m. ET
• TV: SEC Network+ (Noah Fray, Ravi Moss)
• Local Radio: UK Sports Network (Tom Leach, Goose Givens)
• AM: 840 WHAS, 630 WLAP
• FM: 98.1 WBUL
• Online: iHeart Radio
• Sirius XM: TBA

Both games this week (Nicholls, Valparaiso) will be on SEC Network+. If you’re not sure how to access SEC Network+, Steven Peake is here to help you out.

You can also follow along on the KSR LIVE BLOG, which will start a few hours before tipoff, and join the conversation on KSBoard.

Take advantage of our KSR+ Introductory Offer to get bonus coverage of the Cats, including game threads, in-depth scouting reports, and the latest recruiting and roster intel. $1 for a week.