Illinois Fighting Illini vs Purdue Boilermakers Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 01/24/2026

Game Time: 3:00 pm ET, Saturday, January 24, 2026

Venue:  Mackey Arena, West Lafayette, IN

Where to Watch:  FOX

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Illinois +4.5, Purdue -4.5; Over/Under:  150.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  Illinois +4.5, Purdue -4.5; Over/Under:  150.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Illinois +4.5, Purdue -4.5; Over/Under:  150.5 points

Illinois Fighting Illini:  16-3 (7-1) (5th place, Big Ten)

Purdue Boilermakers:  17-2 (7-1) (4th place, Big Ten)

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Illinois Fighting Illini:  5-0  last 5

Purdue Boilermakers:  4-1  last 5

Illinois is entering this game with a 16-3 record overall, a 7-1 record in conference games, and they are 4-0 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. Andrej Stojaković led the team in points in that game with 30 while David Mirkovic was next on the team with 15. Keaton Wagler led the team in assists with 8 in that game while David Mirkovic and Andrej Stojaković each led the team in rebounds with 9. They were 43.5% from the field, 37.5% from 3-point range, and 71.4% from the free throw line with their shooting in that game. Their offense is averaging 85.3 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 67.6 PPG against them. Illinois has an ATS record of 12-7 this season and their O/U record is 7-12.

Purdue is entering this game with a 17-2 record overall, a 7-1 conference record, and they are 10-1 in their home games this season where they will be in this game. They are coming off a loss against the UCLA Bruins in their last game. C. J. Cox led the team in points in that game with 16 while Braden Smith was next on the team with 12. Trey Kaufman-Renn led the team in assists with 5 in that game while Trey Kaufman-Renn led the team in rebounds with 7. They were 45% from the field, 25.9% from 3-point range, and 85.7% from the free throw line with their shooting in that game. Their offense is averaging 84.1 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 68.1 PPG against them. Purdue has an ATS record of 9-10 this season and their O/U record is 8-11.

The current betting odds have Purdue listed as a 4.5 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. Purdue has looked great in their games this season with their 17-2 record overall and their 7-1 conference record which has them right near the top of the Big Ten. They have looked great on their home court too with their 10-1 home record this season. Meanwhile, Illinois has looked good in their games this season with their 16-3 record overall and their 7-1 conference record which has them right near the top of the Big Ten. They have been a good road team too with their 4-0 road record this year. Illinois has looked like one of the best teams in the nation this season and they have been rolling in their games lately. Their only loss in the Big Ten was against Nebraska who is still undefeated, but they have been rolling with 8 wins in a row now. As good as they have looked, Purdue is still the better team in this game and was even ranked 1st in the nation coming into the season. They have lost that number 1 spot, but they have still been in the top 5 all year and they are truly one of the best teams in the nation with the talent they have. They have been rolling over opponents in the Big Ten too, but they just picked up their first conference loss of the season. They are off a tight road loss to UCLA who isn't a bad team, but now Purdue is back at home after that trip out West and they will be looking to bounce back in a big way here. This is a great chance for them to make a statement at home against another ranked team and put that loss in the rear view mirror, so look for Purdue to bring their best effort to bounce back. The best way to place a bet here is on Purdue to cover the spread in this game. 

Illinois Purdue Prediction:  Our NCAAB Pick for Saturday, January 24, 2026 (3:00 pm ET start time) is Purdue 89 Illinois 80.

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Illinois Fighting Illini: 8-1 ATS on the road when the line is +3 to -3. 22-9 ATS after a win by 15 points or more. 8-4 ATS versus poor foul drawing teams - attempting 18 free throws/game or less. 17-8 OVER in road games. 25-10 OVER off a win against a conference rival.

Purdue Boilermakers: 4-7 ATS as a home favorite or pick. 0-4 ATS after playing a road game. 6-10 ATS in a home game where the total is 150 to 159.5. 31-11 OVER as a home favorite or pick. 16-9 OVER after playing a road game.

Illinois Fighting Illini:  K. Boswell (G) Out - Hand. T. Rodgers (G-F) Out - Knee.

Purdue Boilermakers:  None.

"It's not a situation that we've not had previously here in my time [at Illinois],. It's one of the things that we do is we find a way and we'll continue to do that. Our thoughts are with Kylan. It's very, very unfortunate. Can't wait to get him back in February. He'll be an integral part of everything we do from the coaching side of it. When he's not with [athletic trainer Justin Games] or [strength and conditioning coach Adam Fletcher], he'll be with us. He's still an integral part of everything that we're doing, even though he's not on the court." - Brad Underwood on the injury to Kylan Boswell.

"The thing that I would say for them were the eight blocked shots. The six blocked shots in the first half were huge. We're getting the ball at the basket a lot. I think they blocked one three, but all the rest were at the basket. We had a couple transition layups that got blocked, a couple with our big guys on offensive rebounds and post-ups. We had to do a better job finishing." - Matt Painter after his team’s loss against UCLA in their last game. 

K. Boswell 

T. Ivisic 

D. Mirkovic 

A. Stojakovic 

K. Wagler

O. Cluff 

C. Cox 

T. Kaufman-Renn 

F. Loyer 

B. Smith

PPG: Keaton Wagler (15.9)

APG: Keaton Wagler (4)

Reb/G: David Mirkovic (8.4)

PPG: Braden Smith (14.5)

APG: Braden Smith (9.1)

Reb/G: Trey Kaufman-Renn (8.9)

Coaches:

Illinois Fighting Illini: Brad Underwood (9th season)

Purdue Boilermakers: Matt Painter (21st season)