by Chuck Sommers
Thursday, Jan 20, 2022
Time: 7 p.m. ET
Venue: Redbird Arena, Normal, IL
Where to watch: N/A
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Illinois State -7
BetMGM: Illinois State -7.5
Caesars: NL
Season record
Evansville: 4-12 (0-5 Missouri Valley)
Illinois State: 9-9 (2-3 Missouri Valley)
What a run for Oskeim Sports over the last week, going 13-3-0 in 16 selections and drawing a net profit of $9,810. Jeff Keim was 2-1 on Monday and is on a RED-HOT 78% all sports run and has PRODUCED a net profit of +$22,920 on the college hardwood this season so grab his #1 SEC Game of Week right now and start winning with one of the HOTTEST handicappers in the industry! Catch Jeff's plays available right now at the Shop Picks page, where you can find all of the Best Bets from our champion sports handicappers.
Evansville - Illinois State preview, analysis and prediction
Whenever there’s a battle of two bad teams, just pick the least best. This case would be the Illinois State Redbirds over the Evansville Purple Aces on Friday in Normal, Illinois.
This game is anything but normal given how both teams are on some ridiculous slides, one worst than the other. Illinois State has lost four of five and have lost some serious traction from what looked to be a promising 8-5 start.
The Redbirds are coming off a long road stint in which they’ve lost four straight road games, more recently an 88-63 loss to Missouri State on Wednesday. Illinois State also has losses to Valparaiso (overtime) and No. 8 Wisconsin in that mix where it only lost by four.
Moral victories are to be had when it comes to smaller programs, but Illinois State would probably rather have a record above .500 than trying to figure things out after losing by 25 points. The Redbirds ran into a buzzsaw on Thursday, being held to just 35 percent from the floor and going only 4 of 18 from 3-point range. Every single ILST player scored led by Mark Freeman’s 19 points in 22 minutes off the bench.
Missouri State, meanwhile, shot a blistering 57.7 percent and it also helped making 20 of 23 from the free-throw line.
Illinois State actually covered its past six games before losing as 9.5-point underdogs to Missouri State. Four different times they covered by double digits, including that 17-point dog status against Wisconsin. That 6-1 ATS run has put ILST in ‘recovered well’ territory, now sitting at 9-7 ATS and the over cashing 11 out of 16 times.
Also to mention, Illinois State is 8-2 at home this season while Evansville is just 1-5 on the road. That’s kind of a big deal.
Illinois State has gone 4-1 against the spread in conference play, while Evansville is 1-8 ATS as an underdog. I don’t think anything more needs to be said other than that. Illinois State by 20
Betting trends
Evansville is 0-4 ATS in its last four.
Evansville is 1-6 ATS in its last seven road game against a team with a winning home record.
Illinois State is 6-1 ATS in its last seven.
Over is 6-1 in Illinois State's last seven following outright loss.
Projected starting lineup
Evansville:
PG: Shamar Givance
SG: Jawuan Newton
SF: Noah Frederking
PF: Preston Phillips
C: Evan Kuhlman
SF: Noah Frederking
PF: Preston Phillips
C: Evan Kuhlman
Illinois State:
PG: Mark Freeman
SG: Josiah Strong
SF: Antonio Reaves
PF: Kendall Lewis
C: Sy Chatman
SF: Antonio Reaves
PF: Kendall Lewis
C: Sy Chatman
Don't miss our champion handicappers' free picks and expert basketball picks today. And if you enjoyed this Evansville - Illinois State prediction, be sure to drop by every day for our daily college basketball projections and previews.
Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
