Tennessee vs. Wofford: 2025 NCAA Tournament Odds & Picks

by BettingPros Staff |
Mar 16, 2025

The 2025 NCAA Tournament is officially here! The March Madness Bracket is set, and first-round NCAA Tournament matchups are in place. It’s time to make your picks and predictions for the first round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament! We’re here to help as we’ll have picks and predictions for each of the first-round 2025 NCAA Tournament games. Here are our top picks and predictions for Tennessee vs. Wofford.

2025 NCAA Tournament Odds & Picks: Tennessee vs. Wofford

Let’s dive into our top picks and predictions for this opening-round NCAA Tournament matchup.

2025 NCAA Tournament Preview: Tennessee vs. Wofford

Tennessee 2025 NCAA Tournament Preview

Stop me if you've heard this one before: Tennessee has banked on its defense this season, entering the NCAA Tournament with high hopes.

The Vols have forced the lowest three-point shooting percentage in the nation, slow teams down to a snail’s pace, and play some feisty ball that has won them games despite facing the fourth-toughest slate of offenses this season. Tennessee’s undefeated non-conference record shows just how difficult it is to prepare for the Volunteers. Tennessee ranked fourth on Bart Torvik in non-conference efficiency.

SEC Defensive Player of the Year Zakai Zeigler embodies everything about his team's identity, and his playmaking helps find sharpshooter Chaz Lanier, who had some excellent showings leading into the tournament.

The Vols are probably due for negative regression when it comes to opponent shooting, and they keep everything outside, so it could take just one hot shooting night to sink them. Their defense has also taken a small step back of late, ranking outside the top 50 over the last month, per Bart Torvik. That is an extreme difference from the start of the year.

Tennessee’s recent play doesn’t match its seeding, but if you look at the season as a whole, this is a team that never lost outside of the conference and has the chance to do the same in the tournament. Head coach Rick Barnes is known for coming up short in March, and the Vols don't have the most consistent offense, but man oh man, is this a dangerous tournament team.

Wofford 2025 NCAA Tournament Preview

Wofford depended on a 50 percent shooting night from deep and 25 free throws to take down Furman and earn an auto-bid out of the SoCon. If they want to upset their opening-round matchup, they will need an even better shooting night. This is a team that lost 86-35 against Duke and ranked 173rd in non-conference play this year.

This team is led by an elite guard Corey Tripp and 6-foot-9 center Kyler Filewich for a solid inside-out approach from coach Dwight Perry. The Terries get 39 percent of their points from beyond the arc, 33rd most in DI, but grab 35 percent of their misses, a top-25 clip in basketball. Converting their threes is a path to victory but they have a fall-back plan with their offensive rebounding abilities. Hopefully, Wofford sharpshooter Justin Bailey, who tallied 19 points in the SoCon ship, or Jackson Sivills, who went for 20, can get hot from deep and serve some surprises.

But the three-game winning streak Wofford went on to win their tournament matches their season-long winning streak. This team is better than their 19-15 record suggests, and they are playing their best basketball right now, but this is quite the uphill battle for Dwight Perry and Co. without a doubt.

2025 NCAA Tournament Predictions: Tennessee vs. Wofford

It's never easy for a mid-major team to compete against a defense like the Tennessee Volunteers. Tennessee is the No. 3-ranked defense per KenPom and has limited teams to a 44.4% effective field goal percentage. Opponents have nailed just 27.8% from deep against the Vols. That's significant because Wofford has earned nearly 39% of its points from downtown this season. It's unlikely they'll be able to sustain success from downtown against Tennessee.

Meanwhile, Wofford has forced only 14.9% of turnovers on defense and has allowed teams to shoot a 51.8% effective field goal percentage. The Vols will likely limit turnovers and get to the foul line consistently while hitting shots consistently. This isn't an ideal matchup for Wofford. I'll take Tennessee at -19.5.

2025 NCAA Tournament Picks: Tennessee vs. Wofford

Bet: Tennessee -19.5 (-110 via FanDuel Sportsbook)

Check out all of our 2025 NCAA Tournament Bracket & Betting Coverage >>

2025 NCAA Tournament Sports Betting Picks

For those looking to place bets on the matchups, let's take a look at the early odds and picks for the 2025 NCAA Tournament.

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