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The No.10 ranked Illinois Fighting Illini takes on the Michigan State Spartans at the State Farm Center this Thursday night. Both teams lost their respective last fixtures, meaning both badly need the win to keep pace with the leaders in the Big Ten. In our latest NCAAB betting picks, we tell you who will win and the best bets to place on the match.
- What; 2023/24 NCAA Men’s Basketball
- Who; Illinois Fighting Illini vs. MI State Spartans
- Where; State Farm Center, Champaign, Illinois
- When; Thursday, January 11th 2024
- Tip-Off; 9 pm ET
The Fighting Illini went down 83-78 to Purdue in the Big Ten on Saturday. The loss was the first in the Big Ten for Illinois and their third overall. It also brought to an end a four-match winning streak.
Michigan State also lost in their last fixture. The Spartans went down 88-74 away at Northwestern. This was Michigan State’s sixth defeat of what has been a bitterly disappointing 2023/24 season.
Latest betting to win the Big Ten
Despite suffering a shock 16-point defeat to the Nebraska Cornhuskers on Tuesday, the Purdue Boilermakers are still the favorites to win the Big Ten at -200. The closest rival to the Boilermakers is the Wisconsin Badgers at +400. The Badgers currently sit top of the Big Ten with a 3-0 record in the conference.
Elsewhere in the betting, Illinois is +1200, with Ohio State at +1400, Michigan State at +1800, and Nebraska at +2500.
Betting to win the 2024 NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship
Now let’s take a look at how Purdue’s defeat has affected the betting to win the 2024 NCAA Basketball Championship. Before the loss to Nebraska, the best college basketball betting sites had Purdue as their favorite at +850. Now, since the defeat, there are new favorites to win the Championship. And the new favorites are Arizona at +900. The Purdue Boilermakers have slipped to +950 and are now the second favorites, with Houston third at +1100.
Outside of the three leading teams in the betting is defending champions UConn, who are out at +1400. Kansas and Kentucky are at +1600, with the Tennessee Volunteers at +2000.
The top-rated NCAAB betting sites must still expect MI State to improve this season, as the Spartans are +2500 to win the Championship. Illinois is +6600.
Illinois Fighting Illini vs. MI State Match Betting
Next up, we’re looking at the latest NCAAB betting lines for the Big Ten matchup. Not all the sportsbooks are offering a money line at the time of writing. Bovada is, and they make Illinois favorites at -170, with MI State at +145.
On the handicap spread, MI State has a 3.5-point advantage. To win with the spread, the Spartans are -110. As for the Fighting Illini, they are -110 to win and cover the spread.
The total points spread is 149.5. Over and under are both -110. More betting options are available on our college basketball odds table. For our odds, we only use the top-rated NCAA basketball betting sites.
| Illinois Fighting Illini vs. MI State Spartans |  |  |  |
| Illinois | -170 | N/A | N/A |
| MI State | +145 | N/A | N/A |
| Illinois (-3.5) | -110 | -110 | -110 |
| MI State (+3.5) | -110 | -110 | -110 |
| Over 149.5 | -110 | -110 | -110 |
| Under 149.5 | -110 | -110 | -110 |
Illinois Fighting Illini vs. MI State; Latest Form
Illinois sits third in the Big Ten with a conference record of 2-1. Overall this season, the Fighting Illini are 11-3, with a home record of 8-1. They are currently 10th in the latest AP Rankings.
In their most recent outing, they were taken down by Purdue by an 83-78 scoreline. But that doesn’t tell the whole story of the match. At the halfway stage, the Boilermakers held a commanding 47-32 lead. This was further stretched to 21 points early in the second half. But then the Fighting Illini produced a remarkable comeback, led by AP Player of the Week Marcus Domask, who chipped in with a 26-point haul.
The comeback wasn’t enough to gain the victory for Illinois. But it was a show of the Fighting Illini’s battling qualities and may even have played a part in Purdue’s loss to Nebraska in their following match.
In the Big Ten, MI State sits in 11th place with a 1-3 record. Their overall record this season reads 9-6, and on the road, the Spartans are 0-2. The Spartans’ most recent match was an 88-74 drubbing from Northwestern on Sunday night.
'CATS WIN 😼
That's three straight against Sparty ‼️ pic.twitter.com/Mn2zzZuqOk
— Northwestern Basketball (@NUMensBball) January 8, 2024
That defeat snapped a five-match winning streak the Spartans had been on. Overall, this has been a poor season for Michigan State. Winning against the No.10 ranked Illinois would provide a much-needed boost. And if they are to make it to the post-season playoffs. Their revival will need to start soon.
Illinois Fighting Illini vs. MI State Betting Picks
We seem to have been waiting for the Michigan State Spartans to come good all season. They do have a performance in them, but we can’t back them in the hope that they come good. For this matchup, we have to go with form.
For our betting pick, we are going for Illinois to win and cover the spread. A 3-5 point spread isn’t huge, and taking the Fighting Illini at -110 on the spread looks better value than the -170 available on the money line.
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