The No. 4 seed Illinois Fighting Illini (22-9) are a 7.5-point favorite in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament against the No. 13 seed Chattanooga Mocs (27-7) on Friday at PPG Paints Arena. The contest begins at 6:50 PM. Here are insights into this South Regional Region 4-13 matchup to help you fill out your bracket.
Illinois has compiled a 13-17-0 record against the spread this season, while Chattanooga is 18-15-0. The Fighting Illini are 17-13-0 and the Mocs are 18-15-0 in terms of going over the point total. The two teams combine to score 150.6 points per game, 15.1 more points than this matchup’s total. Illinois has a 4-6-0 record against the spread while going 7-3 overall over the past 10 contests. Chattanooga has gone 5-5-0 against the spread and 8-2 overall in its last 10 contests.
Before this college hoops showdown, here is everything you need to prepare for Friday’s action.
Chattanooga 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.
- Spread: Illinois -7.5
- Total: 135.5
- Moneyline: Illinois -329, Chattanooga +259
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Chattanooga at Illinois odds, spread, & more
Prediction
Illinois 74, Chattanooga 67
Moneyline
- The Fighting Illini have won 20 of the 26 games they were favored on the moneyline this season (76.9%).
- Illinois is 12-2 (winning 85.7% of its games) when it has played as a moneyline favorite of -329 or shorter.
- Based on this game’s moneyline, the Fighting Illini have an implied win probability of 76.7%.
- The Mocs have won four of the six games they’ve played as underdogs this season.
- Chattanooga has entered two games this season as the underdog by +259 or more and won each of those games.
- The bookmakers’ moneyline implies a 27.9% chance of a victory for the Mocs.
Against the spread
- The Fighting Illini record 75.8 points per game, 11.1 more points than the 64.7 the Mocs give up.
- Illinois has a 13-12 record against the spread and a 19-6 record overall when putting up more than 64.7 points.
- When Chattanooga gives up fewer than 75.8 points, it is 16-9 against the spread and 23-3 overall.
- The Mocs score an average of 74.8 points per game, 7.2 more points than the 67.6 the Fighting Illini allow to opponents.
- Chattanooga is 14-11 against the spread and 21-5 overall when it scores more than 67.6 points.
- Illinois is 11-9 against the spread and 19-3 overall when it allows fewer than 74.8 points.
- The Fighting Illini have totaled 252 more points than their opponents this season (8.2 per game on average), and the Mocs have scored 344 more points than their opponents (10.1 per game).
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Over/Under
- The Fighting Illini have an average implied point total of 75.5 this season, which is 3.5 points higher than their implied total in Friday’s game (72).
- This season, Illinois has put up more than 72 points 20 times.
- The Mocs’ implied point total in this matchup (64 points) equals the team’s season average.
- This year, Chattanooga has put up more than 64 points in 31 games.
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How to watch Illinois vs. Chattanooga
- Game Day: Friday, March 18, 2022
- Game Time: 6:50 PM ET
- Live Stream: Hulu
Find out how to watch March Madness live on Hulu!
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