Illinois Fighting Illini vs Penn State Nittany Lions Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 02/21/2024

Game Time: 6:30 pm ET, Wednesday, February 21, 2024

Venue:  Rec Hall, University Park, PA

Where to Watch:  Big Ten Network

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Illinois -7.5, PSU +7.5; Over/Under:  157.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  Illinois -7.5, PSU +7.5; Over/Under:  157.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Illinois -7.5, PSU +7.5; Over/Under:  157.5 points

Illinois Fighting Illini:  18-6 (9-4) (2nd place, Big Ten)

Penn State Nittany Lions:  12-13 (6-8) (12th place, Big Ten)

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Illinois Fighting Illini:  4-1  last 5

Penn State Nittany Lions:  2-3  last 5

Illinois is entering this game with a 19-6 record overall, a 10-4 record in conference games, and they are 4-4 in their road games this season where they will be in this game. They are coming off a win against the Maryland Terrapins in their last game. Terrence Shannon Jr. led the team in points per game in that game with 27 while Marcus Domask was next on the team with 19. Marcus Domask led the team in assists with 3 in that game while Marcus Domask led the team in rebounds with 12. They were 48% from the field, 25% from 3-point range, and 88.9% from the free throw line with their shooting in that game. Their offense is averaging 83.1 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 70.7 PPG against them. Illinois has an ATS record of 13-9-3 this season and their O/U record is 17-8.

Penn State is entering this game with a 12-14 record overall, a 6-9 conference record, and they are 10-4 in their home games this season where they will be in this game. They are coming off a loss against the Nebraska Cornhuskers in their last game. Zach Hicks led the team in points in that game with 13 while Adrian Baldwin Jr. was next on the team with 10. Adrian Baldwin Jr. led the team in assists with 2 in that game while Zach Hicks led the team in rebounds with 6. They were 33.3% from the field, 21.7% from 3-point range, and 50% from the free throw line with their shooting in that game. Their offense is averaging 74.8 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 73.3 PPG against them. Penn State has an ATS record of 12-14 this season and their O/U record is 15-10-1.

The current betting odds have Illinois listed as a 7.5 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. Illinois has looked really good in their games this season with their 19-6 record overall which has them ranked inside the top 25 teams in the country. They have looked great in the Big Ten this year with their 10-4 conference record and they haven't been a terrible road team either with their 4-4 road record. Meanwhile, Penn State hasn't looked good in their games this season with their losing 12-14 record overall. They have struggled a lot in the Big Ten with their 6-9 conference record which has them near the bottom of the conference. They have looked a lot better on their home court with their 10-4 home record, but now they are dealing with some other issues off the court which is going to affect their play in a negative way. Their leading scorer was just dismissed from the team which is only going to hurt them more in these games when they have already been struggling. Illinois also won their last game on the road and have been gaining some momentum again so they will be motivated to keep winning these games against weaker teams in the conference and finish the season strong. The best way to place a bet here is on Illinois to cover the spread in this game. 

Illinois Penn State Prediction:  Our NCAAB Pick for Wednesday, February 21, 2024 (6:30 pm ET start time) is Illinois 74 Penn State 62.

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Illinois Fighting Illini: 2-9 ATS after scoring 80 points or more in a win over a conference rival. 2-9 ATS after a win by 6 points or less. 17-8 OVER in all games. 11-3 OVER against conference opponents. 12-4 OVER after a combined score of 165 points or more.

Penn State Nittany Lions: 39-22 ATS against conference opponents. 23-9 ATS off a loss against a conference rival. 7-1 ATS after 3 or more consecutive losses. 10-5 OVER against conference opponents. 8-4 OVER off a loss by 10 points or more to a conference rival. 10-4 OVER after playing a game as an underdog.

Illinois Fighting Illini:  A. Hansberry (F) Ques Wed - Back.

Penn State Nittany Lions:  K. Clary (G) Ques Wed - Undisclosed. D. Lilley (F) Ques Wed - Undisclosed.

“Those are plays that send you home in the NCAA tournament.… Those are plays that veterans make. We talk a lot about those. Those are plays you need to be able to make down the stretch in the last third of the season.” - Brad Underwood after his team’s win against Maryland in their last game on Saturday.

"We'll move forward and focus on the task at hand. It came to a point where as a coach, I decided to move on." - Mike Rhoades on Kanye Clary no longer being with the team for this college basketball season.

M. Domask 

Q. Guerrier 

C. Hawkins 

T. Rodgers 

T. Shannon

A. Baldwin 

K. Clary 

Z. Hicks 

P. Johnson 

Q. Wahab

PPG: T. Shannon Jr. (21.4)

APG: M. Domask (3.4)

Reb/G: Q. Guerrier (7.2)

PPG: K. Clary (16.7)

APG: A. Baldwin Jr. (5.3)

Reb/G: Q. Wahab (7.6)

Coaches:

Illinois Fighting Illini: Brad Underwood (7th season)

Penn State Nittany Lions: Mike Rhoades (1st season)