The No. 11
Michigan State Spartans (19-5, 10-3 Big Ten) visit the
Illinois Fighting Illini (17-8, 9-6) Saturday at State Farm Center. Tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET (FOX). Let’s analyze
BetMGM Sportsbook’s college basketball odds around the
Michigan State vs. Illinois odds , and make our expert
college basketball picks and predictions . The Spartans suffered a 71-67 loss at home to Indiana Tuesday, losing outright as an 11.5-point favorite as the Under (148.5) cashed. Sparty has dropped 3 of the past 4 games, while going 1-2-1 against the spread (ATS) in the span. The Under has cashed in 4 of the past 5 games. For the Fighting Illini, they’ve won 2 in a row, and 3 of the past 4 games, while going just 3-5 ATS in the previous 8 contests. The Over is 3-1 in the past 4 games, and 11-4 across the past 15 outings. These teams met Jan. 19 in East Lansing, with the Spartans picking up an 80-78 win as a 1-point favorite as the Under (160) just came in. Illinois saw star
Kasparas Jakucionis foul out while playing just 9 minutes, finishing with 3 points, 0 rebounds and 3 assists before getting the quick shower. Provided by
BetMGM Sportsbook ; access
USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 9:35 a.m. ET.
Michigan State at Illinois picks and predictions
Prediction
Illinois (-275) will cost you nearly 3 times your potential return, which is just a little too expensive. The Illini has rebounded with a pair of decent wins over Minnesota and UCLA after a bit of a skid from Jan. 19-Feb. 5. That skid started with a loss at Breslin Center against Michigan State (+225). While Sparty is down, it is not yet out. This is a team with a ton of top-10 talent. It wouldn’t be shocking to see Michigan State win outright.
PASS .
Play our free daily Pick’em Challenge and win! Play now ! BACK MICHIGAN STATE +6.5 (-
110 ) catching more than 3 buckets. While Sparty is just 3-4-1 ATS in the past 8 games, it is 2-0-1 ATS in the past 3 games as an underdog since Nov. 27, while winning 2 of those contests outright. Illinois -6.5 (-110) is just 3-5 ATS in the past 8 outings, and as a favorite of 6.5 or fewer points, it is just 2-6 ATS in the most 8 recent instances.
UNDER 158.5 (-
110 ) is the lean, but go with a
half-unit play at most. While the Over has connected in 3 of the past 4 games for Illinois, and the Over is 5-0 in the past 5 at home, the total went low in the first meeting with Michigan State. And, for the Spartans, the total is on a 4-1 run in the past 5 games, while going 3-1 in the past 4 true road contests. The Under has hit in 9 of the past 13 outings, too.
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