Kentucky vs. Santa Clara odds, March Madness predictions: 2026 NCAA Tournament picks from proven model

SportsLine's model simulated Santa Clara Broncos vs. Kentucky Wildcats and revealed its college basketball picks for this NCAA Tournament 2026 first-round matchup on Friday

The 10th-seeded Santa Clara Broncos will face the seventh-seeded Kentucky Wildcats in the first round of the 2026 NCAA Tournament on Friday. Santa Clara is coming off a 79-68 loss to Gonzaga in the WCC Tournament championship game, while Kentucky dropped a 71-63 decision to Florida in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals. The Broncos (26-8), who placed third in the WCC standings at 15-3, have won three of four games. The Wildcats (21-13), who finished tied for seventh in the Southeastern Conference at 10-8, have won two of their last three.

Tipoff from the Enterprise Center in St. Louis is set for 12:15 p.m. ET. Kentucky is a 2.5-point favorite in the latest Santa Clara vs. Kentucky odds, while the over/under for total points scored is 156.5. Before making any Kentucky vs. Santa Clara picks, check out the Kentucky vs. Santa Clara predictions from the SportsLine Projection Model.

The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every college basketball game 10,000 times. It entered the 2026 NCAA Tournament on a sizzling 11-1 run on its top-rated over/under college basketball picks dating back to last season, and is on a 28-22 run on top-rated CBB side picks.

Now, the model has simulated Santa Clara vs. Kentucky 10,000 times and just revealed its coveted men's college basketball picks and predictions. You can head to SportsLine now to see the model's picks. Here are several men's college basketball odds and men's college basketball lines for Kentucky vs. Santa Clara:

Santa Clara vs. Kentucky spread:    

Kentucky -2.5

Santa Clara vs. Kentucky over/under:    

156.5 points

Santa Clara vs. Kentucky money line:    

Kentucky -153, Santa Clara +128

Santa Clara vs. Kentucky picks:    

Santa Clara vs. Kentucky TV:

CBS

Top Santa Clara vs. Kentucky predictions

After 10,000 simulations of Santa Clara vs. Kentucky, SportsLine's model is going Over on the total (156.5 points). The Over has hit in four of the last six Kentucky games. Santa Clara trended to the Over this season, with 54% of its games clearing the total.

The model projects the Broncos to have three players score over 11 points, including Christian Hammond, who is projected to score 16. The Wildcats are projected to have four players score over nine points, led by Otega Oweh, who is projected to score 20. The model is projecting 159 combined points, as the Over hits 56% of the time. See the full Kentucky vs. Santa Clara picks at SportsLine.

How to make Kentucky vs. Santa Clara picks

Now, the model simulated every possession of Santa Clara vs. Kentucky 10,000 times and says one side of the spread cashes more than 50% of the time. You can only see that pick at SportsLine.

So who wins Kentucky vs. Santa Clara, and which side of the spread hits in more than 50% of simulations? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the Santa Clara vs. Kentucky spread to back, all from the advanced model that just simulated this game 10,000 times, and find out.