The No. 10 Michigan State Spartans (15-3, 6-1 Big Ten) face the No. 21 Illinois Fighting Illini (13-5, 6-2) Tuesday with a 7 p.m. ET tip-off at State Farm Center in Champaign, Ill. Below, we look at the Michigan State vs. Illinois odds and lines and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and bets.
Rankings courtesy of the Ferris Mowers Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports.
Michigan State stumbled Jan. 15 against Northwestern but bounced back with an 86-74 triumph at then-No. 8 Wisconsin Friday. The Spartans went 6-for-12 from distance and got to the line 28 times in what figures as their biggest road win of the season.
F Malik Hall led a strong MSU bench effort that resulted in 43 points. Hall had 14 points and 8 rebounds as Michigan State won for the 10th time in its last 11 games.
Illinois is coming off losing twice last week when it was bested 96-88 in double-overtime at then-No. 4 Purdue Jan. 17 and then they misfired in an 81-65 game at Maryland Friday. The Big Ten’s third-leading team in scoring with 79.3 points per game shot a mere 40.4% over the two games.
Michigan State at Illinois odds, spread and lines
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 8:20 a.m. ET.
- Money line: Michigan State +200 (bet $100 to win $200 | Illinois -250 (bet $250 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Michigan State +5.5 (-110) | Illinois -5.5 (-110)
- Over/Under (O/U): 143.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
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Michigan State at Illinois odds, lines, picks and predictions
Prediction
Illinois 74, Michigan State 71
Money line
Junior C Kofi Cockburn is averaging 21.1 points and 11.8 rebounds per game but is dealing with a concussion and is listed as questionable for Tuesday. He played 22 minutes in the loss to Purdue and then did not play versus Maryland.
Cockburn’s presence at both ends of the floor is quite impactful. Even assuming he does play, don’t count on Illinois dosing out minutes in normal quantities: he’s just too important for what the Illini want to accomplish down the road.
Three-point shooting has fueled recent successes for the MSU offense. Peg that offense as being up for keeping this game within two scores and giving UI a near-35% chance to win.
Consider a partial-unit play value play on the SPARTANS (+200).
Against the spread
The Spartans are 5-0 ATS in their last five road games against teams with a winning home record while the Fighting Illini are 1-4 ATS in their last five home games against foes with a road mark of greater than .600.
TAKE MICHIGAN STATE +5.5 (-110).
Over/Under
A mid-140s contest looks to be on target: PASS.
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