Iowa Hawkeyes at Illinois Fighting Illini Game Preview, Odds, Picks & Predictions

Hawkeyes, Illini Square Off in Regular-Season Finale

· Mar 06 - 5 minutes read

The 2021-22 Big Ten regular season comes to an end Sunday, and the Illinois Fighting Illini are hoping to be playing for a share of the conference title when they welcome the Iowa Hawkeyes.

Illinois is a game behind Wisconsin, but the Badgers play earlier in the day and would clinch the outright crown with a win. Iowa is trying to clinch a top-four spot in the standings, which brings a double-bye in next week’s conference tournament. There’s a lot to play for both teams, so let’s take a closer look at this one for a guide on how to bet online on the game.

Jordan Bohannon looks on Iowa vs Illinois Picks — Jaime Crawford/Getty Images/AFP

Iowa Heating Up at Right Time

The Iowa Hawkeyes are red-hot, winning eight of their last nine and scoring seemingly at will at times. Iowa has scored 700 points over its last eight games, averaging 87.5 points per game, and that is the most scored by a Big Ten team over an eight-game span in conference play since the Hawkeyes had 709 over eight games in 1995.

Of course, Iowa is going to step up in competition against the Illinois Fighting Illini after facing just one opponent in the top six of the league’s standings over the last 10 games.

One player who has not worried about who the opponent is this year is forward Keegan Murray, the Big Ten’s top scorer at 23.3 points per game. Murray is shooting 56.6% from the floor, including 38.5% from 3-point range, and he can put points on the board from nearly anywhere.

Guard Jordan Bohananon is one of many players on the Hawkeyes that can get hot from deep, and he’s drained nine from beyond the arc over the last two games. Bohannon is averaging 11.2 points per game, but he’s averaged 15.1 over the last eight contests, including a 19-point performance in Thursday’s win over Michigan.

The Fighting Illini are hoping for the Wisconsin Badgers to stumble to allow Illinois a shot at a share of the Big Ten regular-season title. The Illini have bigger goals, of course, with the Big Ten tournament and the NCAA Tournament on the horizon, but the team would certainly like to earn a regular-season crown despite some recent struggles.

Illinois has been seen as a title contender thanks to the presence of Kofi Cockburn, but it’s the play of the rest of the Illini that will determine how far they advance in March. That was evident against the Penn State Nittany Lions on Thursday night, as Cockburn was held to seven field-goal attempts by gimmick defenses that the big center will likely see in the NCAAs.

“We saw a lot of different things tonight. Guys not being guarded, triangle-and-two, zones, a bunch of combination defenses,” Illinois coach Brad Underwood said after Thursday’s win. “I’m really proud of Kofi. I think he was tremendous defensively on a night when he wasn’t great offensively, and they did a good job of taking him out of that.”

Cockburn is the star of the show for the Illini, averaging 21.0 points per game to rank second in the Big Ten and leading the conference with 10.5 rebounds per contest. But guard Alfonso Plummer has been hot of late, scoring 26 points in back-to-back games before finishing with five in Thursday’s win.

Iowa Hawkeyes at Illinois Fighting Illini Head-to-Head

In the first meeting between these teams, the Illinois Fighting Illini came out on top by four points in Iowa City in a game that finished with both teams in the 80s. These are two very explosive offenses, so the over is definitely in play in this one.

Illinois is on a four-game winning streak against the Iowa Hawkeyes, including sweeping a pair of meetings in 2020-21, and is 63-17 all-time against Iowa in Champaign. Still, Iowa has been hot lately, which is why the college basketball lines have the point spread close for this one.

Iowa Hawkeyes at Illinois Fighting Illini Game Information

Game: Iowa Hawkeyes (22-8, 12-7) at Illinois Fighting Illini (21-8, 14-5)
Location: State Farm Center
Day/Time: Sunday, 7:30 p.m. ET
Television: FS1

Iowa Hawkeyes at Illinois Fighting Illini Betting Lines

Iowa Hawkeyes at Illinois Fighting Illini Prediction

The incentive for the Illinois Fighting Illini to win may be less if the Wisconsin Badgers win earlier in the day, while the Iowa Hawkeyes may need a victory to secure a spot in the Big Ten tournament quarterfinals if the Ohio State Buckeyes win their Sunday contest. While Illinois can be tough at home, Iowa has been playing as well as anyone in the conference of late, and we like the Hawkeyes to at least keep this close if not win it outright.

When doing your college basketball betting, take the Hawkeyes to cover on the road.