South Carolina vs Auburn Odds, Picks and Predictions: Gamecocks Have Something to Prove

The red-hot South Carolina Gamecocks will look to prove they belong at the top of the SEC standings when they visit the Auburn Tigers on tonight. 

South Carolina has won seven straight games to grab a share of the conference lead. Yet it is a huge underdog in the college basketball odds tonight against Auburn, which is coming off a loss to the Florida Gators on Saturday. 

The Tigers are one of the top teams in the country, but beating the Gamecocks by double figures is a tall task. We’ll break down what bettors should expect tonight in our free college basketball picks and predictions for South Carolina vs. Auburn on February 14. 

South Carolina vs Auburn best odds

South Carolina vs Auburn picks and predictions

South Carolina has announced its presence in the SEC over the past month. With seven straight wins, the college basketball world has been forced to take notice of the Gamecocks, who are now the No. 11 team in the country according to the AP poll. 

They haven’t just done it against the weaker teams in the conference, either. On January 30, the Gamecocks scored a 63-59 road win against the Tennessee Volunteers as a 14-point underdog. Advanced metrics aren’t as kind to South Carolina — KenPom.com rates them only 44th in the nation — but that won’t stop the school from snagging a high seed in the NCAA Tournament come March, especially if they can hold on to the SEC regular season title. 

Auburn is an elite team by any test. The Tigers are No. 13 in the AP poll, No. 5 in the KenPom rankings, and just one game back of the Gamecocks and the Alabama Crimson Tide at the top of the SEC standings. The Tigers may not have looked great against Florida on Saturday, but recent wins over Alabama and Mississippi show they can beat anyone in the conference. 

One of the top defensive teams in the country, Auburn has also sported a balanced — and perhaps underrated — offensive attack. While the Tigers only have two scorers averaging double digits, led by Johni Broome (16.0 ppg), nobody plays even 25 minutes per game, and eight different players are contributing at least five points a night. It’s a winning combination, as Auburn has outscored its opponents by double digits in each of its 19 wins. 

The question is whether the Tigers can pull that off again against a South Carolina team that has only one double-digit loss on its resume. The Gamecocks surrender just 64 points per game, which doesn’t leave a lot of room for blowout losses. While South Carolina plays solidly on defense, the real culprit here is its pace of play. The Gamecocks rank 355th out of 362 teams in adjusted tempo on KenPom, only ahead of known turtles like the Virginia Cavaliers and Saint Mary’s Gaels. 

Auburn is a much better team than South Carolina, regardless of their respective records, but we haven’t seen teams speed up the Gamecocks much this year, and that’s going to make it hard for the Tigers to push their advantage, even at home. When we add in the fact that South Carolina is red hot while we’ve just seen Auburn struggle against Florida, I have a difficult time justifying a double-digit spread in tonight’s game. 

My best bet: South Carolina +11.5 (-105 at BetMGM)

South Carolina vs Auburn same-game parlay

South Carolina +11.5

Over 137.5

Johni Broome 12+ points

50% boost available

+325 +488 at DraftKings

While I’m taking South Carolina to cover, I like pairing that bet with some Auburn-centric wagers to make an SGP.

That starts with taking the Over at a modest 137.5 points. While the Gamecocks do play slowly, Auburn’s pace should make this game a bit higher-scoring than their average outing. Considering South Carolina normally plays to an average total of 136.6 points anyway, I think this matchup should go Over tonight’s number.

I’ll also take Auburn's Johni Broome to score at least 12 points. Broome is an incredibly consistent scorer and has reached the 12-point mark in each of his last nine games. He’ll do enough to get to at least 12 points and add a little value to our SGP.

Learn how to bet a same-game parlay with these helpful tips and strategies.

South Carolina vs Auburn spread and Over/Under analysis

Auburn opened tonight’s game as a 12-point favorite. That line has remained close to steady, with the consensus spread falling just a half-point to Auburn -11.5. You can find -110 on either side of that line at most books.

Both teams have been great for bettors this year, putting up strong records against the spread. South Carolina is 18-6 ATS this season, while Auburn is 15-7-2 ATS. 

All the metrics say that Auburn is the better team here, and some even suggest the Tigers really are superior by double digits. But South Carolina’s slow-paced style is going to make it difficult for the Tigers to run away with this one. It’s hard to see this Gamecocks team suddenly folding after such a strong run of play lately. I’m picking South Carolina to cover tonight.

The total opened at 139 points. That number has come down, with the consensus Over/Under sitting at 137.5 points as of early Wednesday afternoon. You can find -105 on the Over at that number, while there are still some sites offering -110 on the Under at a higher 138.5-point total. 

Both teams have played below the total this year. The Under holds a 15-9 edge when Auburn plays this year, while also holding a slimmer 13-11 edge in South Carolina’s games.

I think South Carolina’s tepid pace is a deciding factor in playing the spread tonight. However, this total is essentially predicting this to be an average Gamecocks outing, and I don’t think that’s what we can expect against an explosive Auburn team that is playing at home. I’m not looking for a shootout here, but I’m leaning towards the Over on a very low total.

South Carolina vs Auburn betting trend to know

South Carolina is 6-1 ATS in its last seven games overall. Find more college basketball betting trends for South Carolina vs. Auburn.

South Carolina vs Auburn game info

South Carolina vs Auburn key injuries

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