Sign In $
College Basketball

Maryland at Illinois

VegasInsider Staff
VegasInsider Staff Sports Betting Expert
3 minute read
This Friday night’s limited betting board for college basketball does offer one showdown of note between nationally ranked teams in the Big Ten.

The No. 9 Maryland Terrapins head to Champaign to tangle with the No. 20 Illinois Fighting Illini.

No. 9 Maryland Terrapins at No. 20 Illinois Fighting Illini
(FOX Sports 1, 8 p.m. ET)

Opening Odds: >Illinois -3, Total 133.5
Provided by Unibet (NJ and PA only)
Odds subject to change

Betting Matchup

Maryland joins Illinois at the top of the current Big Ten standings with identical straight-up 8-3 records. The Terrapins are coming off Tuesday’s tight 56-51 victory at home against Rutgers. This was the Terrapins’ fifth SU win in a row, but as 7 ½-point favorites, it was the first time they failed to cover the closing line in their past six contests. They are 18-4 SU overall with a 12-10 record against the spread. The total stayed UNDER 130 points in that last game and it has stayed UNDER in six of Maryland’s last nine outings.

The Terrapins opened this season’s conference schedule with an early 59-58 home victory against Illinois closing as heavy 10-point favorites back on Dec. 7. Anthony Cowan Jr. led all scorers in that game with 20 points. Against Rutgers in Tuesday’s win, he ended the night with 17 points. The senior guard is Maryland’s leading scorer this season with 16.3 points per game. Jalen Smith added 14 points to the winning effort on Tuesday as the Terrapins second leading scorer (15.2 points) this year.

Illinois just got strapped with its third conference loss in Sunday’s 72-65 setback against Iowa as a 4 ½-point road underdog. The Fighting Illini (16-6 SU) slipped to 7-4 ATS in those 11 Big Ten games as part of an 11-9-1 record ATS overall. The total has stayed UNDER in four of their last six games after staying UNDER 146 ½ points against Iowa. Illinois only other conference loss was against Michigan State on January 2. It loss that game by 20 points as a 10-point road underdog.

The Fighting Illini are averaging 74.2 PPG led by sophomore guard Ayo Dosunmu’s 15.8-point scoring average. He has failed to reach that average in three of his last five starts with 11 points in Sunday’s loss. Yet, he did put up 27 points in a recent win against Michigan. Illinois has four different players scoring at least 10 PPG. It is shooting 45.6 percent from the field but that percentage drops to 31.2 from three-point range. The Fighting Illini are allowing 64.2 PPG on defense.

Betting Trends

-- The Terrapins are 2-5 SU and 3-4 ATS in their last seven road games but they have won their last two games on the road SU and their last three ATS. The total has gone OVER in four of the seven games.

-- The Fighting Illini are 12-1 SU in their last 13 home games and they have gone 5-2-1 ATS in their last eight games played at home. The total has stayed UNDER in five of the last seven home games.

-- With the earlier win this season, Maryland has carved out a slight 6-4 SU edge against Illinois over the past 10 meetings. The series is tied 5-5 ATS during that same span. The total has stayed UNDER or ended as a PUSH in five of the last seven meetings.

College Basketball News

VegasInsider Staff

VegasInsider Staff

More from VegasInsider Staff
•