#4 Tennessee vs. #13 Louisiana Predictions, Picks & Odds - Thursday 3/16

The bracket is set and we have just a few days to pick our upsets and sleeper teams to make a run during the NCAA Tournament. This matchup features the #4 seed Tennessee Volunteers against the Sun Belt champions, the #13 seed Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns. The #4 seeds swept the #13 seeds last season, but three of the four #13s covered the spread.

Our experts have Tennessee vs. Louisiana predictions in the article below, as well as information on how to take advantage of the current first-bet offer from FanDuel Sportsbook.

TENNESSEE VS. LOUISIANA PREDICTION: TENNESSEE -11.5 (-105) at FanDuel Sportsbook

Click here to sign up for an account at FanDuel and win 10x your first bet in bonus bets worth up to $200 be fading or follow any of our experts’ Tennessee vs. Louisiana predictions.

Tennessee Volunteers vs. Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns basketball predictions for Thursday's March Madness clash

This is the second year in a row that Tennessee has received a #4 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Last season, the Volunteers decimated the Big South Conference champion, Longwood, by a final of 88-56. Louisiana is looking to avoid a similar fate and perhaps, even pull off an upset. The Ragin’ Cajuns reached The Big Dance for the first time since 2014.

Louisiana is a very talented team, but our experts have Tennessee -11.5 (-105 at FanDuel) as the best bet from their Tennessee vs. Louisiana predictions.

Picks, player props and best bets for Tennessee vs. Louisiana including Tennessee -11.5

Despite Tennessee losing guard Zakai Zeigler for the remainder of the season, our experts still like the Volunteers in their Tennessee vs. Louisiana predictions. Zeigler is unquestionably a big loss to the tournament outlook for Tennessee, as he not only averages 10.7 points per game, but dishes out 5.4 assists per game. However, Tennessee still has enough talent and matchup advantages to cover the spread against Louisiana.

Louisiana is led by the former five-star recruit, Jordan Brown. Brown is a dominant post player who averages 19.4 points per game and ranks in the 80th percentile in post-up offense, per Synergy. Unfortunately, this is a brutal matchup for Brown, as Tennessee is among the best rim defenses in the entire country. Per Hoop-Math, Tennessee ranks 20th nationally in field goal percentage defense at the rim.

It’s not just that Tennessee has one good interior defender, it’s that they have several. Tennessee’s frontcourt rotation is made up of 6-9 Olivier Nkamhoua, 6-11 Jonas Aidoo, 7-1 Uros Plavsic, and 6-8 Julian Phillips. There’s little risk of Tennessee suffering through any foul trouble from any of these players, as they have a plethora of capable big men.

Lastly, we can use results from this season to gauge the step-up in competition that Louisiana will be up against. Louisiana has faced one other top-15 team this season, which was Texas. In that matchup, Texas won the game by 28 points. On top of that, Tennessee has won ten games by 25+ points this season.

Our experts are backing the Volunteers in their Tennessee vs. Louisiana predictions. Use this link to join them at FanDuel Sportsbook and claim your chance to win 10x your first bet in bonus bets.

How to bet on Tennessee -11.5 at FanDuel and earn a $200 bonus

Our experts’ Tennessee vs. Louisiana predictions provide a great opportunity to use FanDuel Sportsbook's current offer. All new FanDuel users will receive 10x the amount of their first bet, win or lose. With just a $20 wager, you will receive $200 in bet credits whether your bet wins or loses.

Now is the perfect time to try FanDuel since the NCAA Tournament is starting, so click here to sign up for a new account today. No promo code is required to join, but you do need to be sure to use our link when signing up.

Betting odds, lines and spreads for Tennessee vs. Louisiana powered by FanDuel

FanDuel Sportsbook currently has Tennessee as a -11.5 favorite at -105 odds in their NCAA Tournament matchup with Louisiana, which means the Ragin’ is the +11.5 underdog with odds of -115. 

A $10.50 wager on Tennessee will profit $10 if the Volunteers win by 12 points or more, while an $11.50 wager on Louisiana would also profit $10 if they lose by 11 points or less or win the game outright.

If you’d prefer to bet on the total (over/under) in this game instead, FanDuel sets the total at 136.5, with -110 odds on both the over and the under.

Our experts' Tennessee vs. Louisiana basketball predictions have Tennessee -11.5 (-105 at FanDuel) as their best bet. Sign up for FanDuel Sportsbook to fade or follow that pick to earn up to $200 worth of bonus bets.

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