The No. 5 Illinois Fighting Illini and the No. 23 Wisconsin Badgers will meet for the second time this season this coming Saturday. Needless to say, this is a tasty matchup that college basketball fans should be all hyped up to watch this weekend. Check out our preview of Illinois vs. Wisconsin below.
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Betting Preview for the Illinois Fighting Illini vs Wisconsin Badgers NCAA College Basketball Game on February 27 2021
Where: Kohl Center, Madison, WI
When: Saturday, February 27, 2021, 2:00 PM ET
Line: Illinois Fighting Illini (odds) vs. Wisconsin Badgers (odds) – view all 2021 NCAAB lines
TV Broadcast: ESPN
Betting on the Illinois Fighting Illini (odds)
Record: 16-6 Overall / 12-4 Conference
The Fighting Illini are undeterred despite coming off an 81-72 upset loss in Ann Arbor to the Michigan State Spartans last Tuesday. Illinois will look to bounce back from that loss in their Thursday date with the Nebraska Cornhuskers at home, which is a game they are very much expected to win. The Fighting Illini just couldn’t get their rhythm going in the Michigan State game, as they shot only 40.0 percent from the field and went only 5 of 17 from behind the arc. They missed plenty of free throws as well (19-34). But that’s a loss that shouldn’t define Illinois, which is one of the highest-scoring teams in the nation. In fact, the Fighting Illini are 12th in Division I basketball with 81.3 points per game and eighth in adjusted offensive efficiency rating (118.4). They have proven that their offense works against Wisconsin’s defense when they defeated the Badgers earlier this month at home, 75-60. The tandem of Ayo Dosunmu and Kofi Cockburn was simply too much for Wisconsin, especially the former. Dosunmo dropped a triple-double in that game, posting 21 points, 123 rebounds, and 12 assists, while Cockburn had 23 points and 14 rebounds.
Illinois is 5-5 against the spread in its last 10 home games.
Betting on the Wisconsin Badgers (odds)
Record: 16-8 Overall / 10-7 Conference
Wisconsin finally got a break after back-to-back losses to the Michigan Wolverines and the Iowa Hawkeyes, as they took advantage of a much lighter opponent in their 68-51 road win over the Northwestern Wildcats last Sunday. The Badgers made life hard for Northwestern’s offense. The Wildcats shot only 40.0 percent from the field and committed 14 turnovers. Wisconsin did a good job of pressuring the ball carriers in its loss to the Fighting Illini, as they forced Illinois to commit a whopping 18 turnovers, but when the Badgers were not forcing turnovers, they looked helpless in stopping Dosunmo and Cockburn, in particular. Still, the Badgers should continue that approach to get extra possessions and control the game’s pace like they always like to do. The Badgers are 329th in the nation in adjusted tempo with only 64.6 possessions per 100 possessions and are also allowing just 0.099 points per 100 possessions to opponents.
The under is 3-0 in Wisconsin’s last three games at home.
Writer’s Prediction
Illinois wins, 71-68.
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