Halftime Report

After a tough loss on the road their last time out, Illinois looks much better today on their home court. They have jumped out to a quick 38-34 lead against Indiana. The finale is shaping up to be a lot like these teams' last head-to-head, which was decided by just three points.

Illinois came into the match with some extra motivation after the loss they were dealt the last time these two teams faced off. We'll see if they're able to flip the script or if it'll just be more of the same.

Who's Playing

Indiana Hoosiers @ Illinois Fighting Illini

Current Records: Indiana 12-7, Illinois 14-5

How To Watch

What to Know

The Illinois Fighting Illini and the Indiana Hoosiers will face off in a Big Ten clash at 3:00 p.m. ET on January 27th at State Farm Center. Given that both teams suffered a loss in their last game, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this game.

Illinois fought the good fight in their overtime match against Northwestern on Wednesday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They took a 96-91 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Wildcats. Despite running the score up even higher than they did on Sunday (86), Illinois still had to take the loss.

Despite their loss, Illinois saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Coleman Hawkins, who dropped a double-double on 22 points and 13 rebounds, was perhaps the best of all. Those 13 rebounds set a new season-high mark for him. Another player making a difference was Marcus Domask, who scored 22 points along with six assists.

Even though they lost, Illinois were smashing the offensive glass and finished the game with 21 offensive rebounds. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Northwestern only pulled down seven offensive rebounds.

Meanwhile, the matchup between Indiana and Wisconsin last Friday hardly resembled the 63-45 effort from their previous meeting. The Hoosiers fell 91-79 to the Badgers. Indiana has been going strong on the season, but this is now their second defeat in a row.

Indiana's defeat came about despite a quality game from Malik Reneau, who scored 28 points along with eight rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Mackenzie Mgbako, who scored 17 points.

The Fighting Illini's loss dropped their record down to 14-5. As for the Hoosiers, their defeat was their third straight on the road, which bumped their record down to 12-7.

Saturday's contest is shaping up to be a masterclass in shooting: Illinois just can't miss this season, having made 46.7% of their shots per game. However, it's not like Indiana struggles in that department as they've made 48% of their shots per game this season. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.

Going forward, Illinois is the favorite in this one, as the experts expect to see them win by 14 points. This contest will be their sixth straight as the favorites (so far over this stretch they are 2-2-1 against the spread).

Odds

Illinois is a big 14-point favorite against Indiana, according to the latest college basketball odds.

The oddsmakers had a good feel for the line for this one, as the game opened with the Fighting Illini as a 13.5-point favorite.


The over/under is set at 154.5 points.

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Series History

Indiana has won 6 out of their last 10 games against Illinois.

  • Feb 18, 2023 - Indiana 71 vs. Illinois 68
  • Jan 19, 2023 - Indiana 80 vs. Illinois 65
  • Mar 11, 2022 - Indiana 65 vs. Illinois 63
  • Feb 05, 2022 - Illinois 74 vs. Indiana 57
  • Feb 02, 2021 - Illinois 75 vs. Indiana 71
  • Dec 26, 2020 - Illinois 69 vs. Indiana 60
  • Mar 01, 2020 - Illinois 67 vs. Indiana 66
  • Mar 07, 2019 - Indiana 92 vs. Illinois 74
  • Jan 03, 2019 - Indiana 73 vs. Illinois 65
  • Feb 14, 2018 - Indiana 78 vs. Illinois 68