The No. 7 Iowa Hawkeyes (12-4, 6-2 Big Ten) visit the 22nd-ranked Illinois Fighting Illini (10-5, 6-3) Friday for a 9 p.m. ET tip-off. Below, we analyze the Iowa-Illinois college basketball odds and lines, with picks and predictions.
Rankings courtesy of the Ferris Mowers Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports.
Iowa at Illinois: Odds, spread and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated at 7:00 a.m. ET.
- Money line: Iowa +115 (bet $100 to win $115) | Illinois -140 (bet $140 to win $100)
- Against the spread/ATS: Iowa +2.5 (-115) | Illinois -2.5 (-105)
- Over/Under: 161.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
Iowa at Illinois: Three things to know
- Iowa has had a full week off after getting upset as a 10-point home favorite by Indiana 81-69 Jan. 21. The Hawkeyes’ following game, Sunday vs. Nebraska, was postponed due to COVID-19 issues within the Cornhuskers program. C Luka Garza leads the country in scoring at 26.9 points per game with a team-best 8.9 rebounds per game. Senior G Jordan Bohannon, who was held scoreless in the Hoosiers loss, leads the Hawkeyes in made 3-pointers (39) and assists (4.7 APG).
- Meanwhile, Illinois returns to action for the first time in 10 days. The Illini snapped a 2-game skid with a 79-65 victory as a 10-point favorite vs. Penn State Jan. 19 but had last Saturday’s game at Michigan State postponed because of COVID-19 issues within the MSU program. Junior G Ayo Dosunmu leads the Illini in scoring (21.7 PPG) and assists (4.9 APG), while sophomore C Kofi Cockburn is the team’s top rebounder (10.3).
- Illinois ended a 5-game losing streak in the Iowa series with a 78-76 home victory March 8, 2020. Dosunmu scored a team-high 17 points for the Illini, while Garza tallied a game-high 28 points for the Hawkeyes.
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Iowa at Illinois: Odds, lines, predictions and picks
Prediction
Iowa 81, Illinois 77
Money line (ML)
IOWA (+115) is the STRONGEST PLAY – 1½ times your usual wager. The Hawkeyes will be chomping at the bit after having to think about the Indiana loss for eight days.
Against the Hoosiers, the Hawkeyes didn’t hit a field goal for an 11-minute stretch while blowing a 53-44 second-half lead. They finished shooting 21.7% (5-for-23) behind the 3-point line with Bohannon going 0-for-8. That won’t happen again.
Against the spread (ATS)
AVOID unless you prefer to take the insurance of 2.5 points with the Hawkeyes instead of backing their money line for an outright win.
ATS: Iowa 10-5 | Illinois 8-6-1
Over/Under (O/U)
UNDER 161.5 (-110) is worth a HALF-UNIT bet. The rivals are the Big Ten’s highest-scoring teams, but both haven’t played in at least seven days and some early rust out of the gate should be expected.
Iowa ranks second in the nation at 90.7 PPG, but the average drops 7.1 points to 83.6 PPG in Big Ten action. Illinois averages 82.9 PPG overall and 79.7 PPG in conference games.
O/U records: Iowa 10-5 | Illinois 9-6
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| Johnny’s 2020-21 CBK record / Strongest plays | 42-35-1 / 18-20 |
| CBK record since Jan. 1 / Strongest plays | 27-18-1 / 13-10 |
| 2021 overall record (all sports) / Strongest plays | 40-24-1 / 21-12 |
| 2020 overall record (all sports) / Strongest plays | 178-147-4 / 87-61-1 |
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