The Iowa Hawkeyes (13-18) face the Illinois Fighting Illini (14-17) in the first round of the Big Ten conference tournament game that will take place at the neutral site at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York on Wednesday, February 28, 2018, at 5:30 PM. The NCAA basketball board has opened Iowa as a -1 point betting favorite on the spread line with the total offered at 159.
In their last game, Illinois was on the road where they beat a struggling Rutgers team 75-62 destroying the -2 line they backers were handicapped. The two clubs put up 137 points in the game climbing OVER the 131.5 total line. Michael Finke came off the bench to be the high scorer for the Fighting Illini with 19 points on 6 of 10 shooting and two other players on the team went for at least 14 points. Corey Sanders was the high scorer for the Scarlet Knights going for 18 points on 6 of 11 shooting and four of five starters on the squad went for double figures. Illinois outscored Rutgers by eight points in the second half, and for the game, they shot 47.1% from the floor and held the Scarlet Knights to 43.2% shooting. Illinois had lost two in a row before their win over Rutgers, and they finished the season at 4-14 in Big 10 action.
Iowa was at home in their latest where they beat Northwestern 77-70 as a small -4 home favorite. The teams 147 combined points just passed the 146 total line sending OVER bettors to the windows to cash. Jordan Bohannon was the high scorer for the Hawkeyes with 25 points on 7 of 14 shooting, Tyler Cook had a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds, and four of five starters for the team picked up at least 12 points. Scottie Lindsey led the Wildcats with 32 points on 10 of 14 shooting hitting nine of his 11 three-point attempts, and he was the only player on the squad that went for double figures. Iowa outscored Northwestern by 17 points in the first half and put it in “cruise” for the rest of the match. The Hawkeyes were outshot 46.6 FG% to 42.4 FG% and from three-point land but were exceptional on the offensive glass picking up 16 boards. Iowa snapped their six-game losing streak with their win over Northwestern, and they finished the Big Ten season at 4-14.
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Illinois ranks tied for 137th in the nation in ppg and 198th in opponents’ ppg, and Iowa ranks 61st in ppg and 314th in opponents’ ppg.
In the lone matchup this season between these teams, which was at Illinois, the Hawkeyes beat the Fighting Illini 104-97.
This season Illinois is 12-14-1 ATS with an O/U record of 11-15 and Iowa is 10-15-2 ATS with an O/U record of 18-9.
Get more details: Illinois vs. Iowa Match-Up
SAGARIN RATINGS
Illinois: 78.78
Iowa: 78.62
INJURY REPORT
ILLINOIS
[G] 02/26/2018 – Mark Smith is upgraded to probable Wednesday vs. Iowa (Virus)
IOWA
[G] 12/28/2017 – Connor McCaffery is out indefinitely ( Mouth )
Key Betting Trends
- ILL is 3-1 ATS in their last four games
- ILL is 6-4-1 ATS in their last 11 games held at a neutral site
- ILL has an Under record of 4-2 in their previous six road games
- IOWA is 1-4 ATS in their last five games
- IOWA is 3-0 ATS in their previous three games held at a neutral site
- IOWA has an Over record of 7-3 in their last ten games
Betting Angles
Illinois is 17-8 SU in its last 25 games when playing Iowa.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Illinois’s last five games when playing Iowa.
Iowa is 2-4-1 ATS in its previous seven games when playing Illinois.
Search for the best odds: Live College Basketball Lines
