No. 6 seed Illinois and No. 11 seed Xavier play Friday, March 21 in a
March Madness NCAA Tournament first-round game at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The Midwest Region game is scheduled for 6:45 p.m. MST and can be seen on CBS (
stream with FUBO ). Who will win the March Madness game and advance to the Sweet 16 in the
NCAA bracket ? Check out these
NCAA Tournament first-round picks and
March Madness predictions for the men's college basketball matchup. Illinois is a 3.5-point favorite over Xavier in the game in
March Madness odds provided by
BetMGM Sportsbook . The Fighting Illini are -160 on the moneyline. The Musketeers are +135. The over/under for the game is set at 160.5 points.
Jeremy Cluff writes: "History tells us that a First Four team could get hot and make a run in the NCAA Tournament. We think that Xavier could be that team in 2025."
Dimers : Illinois 82, Xavier 79
It writes: "After extensive simulations, our model gives Xavier a win probability of 38%, while Illinois has a win probability of 62%."
Ready to win March Madness? Join USA TODAY’s Survivor Pool today! Wes Huett writes: "Xavier had a nice streak to end the regular season and looked good in rallying against Texas. We think this will be a shootout, with the Illini able to play just enough defense to get the job done."
March Madness NCAA Tournament odds: Who is favored to win 2025 national championship? Shelby Dermer writes: "Xavier's offense should get quality looks against an Illinois defense that was 14th in the Big 10 in scoring (74.6 points per game) and the Musketeers are equipped to win in a track meet. Five teams that started in the First Four have advanced to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament. There's reason to believe Xavier could follow that trend."
ESPN : Illinois has a 60.3% chance to beat Xavier
The site gives the Musketeers a 39.7% shot at defeating the Fighting Illini in Friday's first-round March Madness NCAA Tournament game.
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