Big Ten conference play continues as Illinois and Wisconsin meet tonight at State Farm Center in Champaign, Illinois.
Wisconsin has surprised at least some by notching some nice wins on the season against Arizona and Pittsburgh. Over the last week, though, it's lost its opening two conference games and will come into this one with a strong desperation to get its first Big Ten win. Illinois also enters this one off a conference loss but will be good about amending that. After all, it's dominated this Wisconsin team recently with eight straight wins.
Read on for my Illinois vs Wisconsin predictions and free college basketball picks for Tuesday, December 10.
Wisconsin vs Illinois prediction
My best bet
Kasparas Jakucionis 15+ points (-115 at bet365)
My analysis
The historical dominance of Illinois in this series had the slightest influence in this opening line. The opener of 7.5 didn't match any primary analytical site, nor did it match my model's projection. Since then, this number has been bet down and played into a range I no longer have a strong side. With that in mind, I've elected to play a player prop for my best bet.
We're going with Kasparas Jakucionis over 14.5 points as my best bet. The fantastic first-year student should be the latest to take advantage of a poor Wisconsin pick-and-roll defense.
This looks like the Arkansas game for me.
Both the Razorbacks and Badgers struggle against defending the pick and roll (for different reasons) — we just saw Jakucionis's success against that Arkansas team. He scored 23 points with four assists, looking entirely in control of the offense. It marked the third straight 20+ point game for the young Lithuanian. Given his success then, why should it stop now?
Wisconsin's big-heavy lineups have allowed an above-average rate of cutting bigs to the basket, dribble jumpers, and defending pick-and-rolls. This is all just an elongated way of saying they struggle against the ball-screen-heavy offense. Almost no team in the country has run more plays defined as "dribble jumpers" than Illinois, posting a frequency percentile of 96%. This all sets up the Illinois guard play to have a significant impact.
Wisconsin vs Illinois same-game parlay
Kasparas Jakucionis 15+ points
Steven Crowl Under 2.5 assists
We paired Steven Crowl to go under his assist total with our best bet for a solid payout. Illinois has done a tremendous job this season covering any type of inside action. This is usually where Crowl has done his damage in the assist area. He may have to be more offensively aggressive tonight, too, given the strengths and weaknesses of the Illinois defense, but we simply don't see him doing much distribution.
Learn how to bet a same-game parlay with these helpful tips and strategies.
Cash your ML bets quicker with bet365's early win payout
Take advantage of the early win payout at bet365, where any pre-game CBB moneyline bet gets paid out as a winner if your school goes up by 18+ points!
Learn more about this feature, and all of bet365's offerings, with our comprehensive bet365 review.
21+. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER.
Wisconsin vs Illinois odds
Wisconsin vs Illinois live odds
Wisconsin vs Illinois opening odds
- Spread: Wisconsin +7.5 | Illinois -7.5
- Moneyline: Wisconsin +240 | Illinois -300
- Over/Under: Over 154 | Under 154
Odds courtesy of bet365
Wisconsin vs Illinois betting trend to know
Wisconsin has hit the Game Total Over in 27 of their last 36 games (+17.10 Units / 43% ROI). Find more college basketball betting trends for Wisconsin vs. Illinois.
How to watch Wisconsin vs Illinois
| Location: | State Farm Center, Champaign, IL |
| Date: | Tuesday, 12-10-2024 |
| Tip-off: | 9:00 p.m. ET |
| TV: | Peacock |
Wisconsin vs Illinois key injuries
Not intended for use in MA.
Affiliate Disclosure: Our team of experts has thoroughly researched and handpicked each product that appears on our website. We may receive compensation if you sign up through our links.
