Although the Fighting Illini have one of the top offenses in the country, their defense takes too many possessions off. Of great concern to gamblers is the unreliable College Basketball lines betting value offered by Illinois. Certainly, the Illinois Fighting Illini basketball program is much better off than it was before head coach Brad Underwood arrived in 2017. This will be the fifth consecutive season that Underwood is taking Illinois to the Big Dance. Still, there is a sense that the 2024-25 season has been a disappointment. The Illini were a middle-of-the-pack team in the Big Ten this season.
2025 NCAA Tournament First Round Friday Illinois Fighting Illini vs. Xavier vs.Texas First Four Game Winner
| Date and Time: | Friday, March 21, 2025, 9:45 p.m. ET |
|---|---|
| Location: | Fiserv Forum, Milwaukee, WI |
| TV Coverage: | CBS |
| Betting Online Odds at SBG: | Click Here |
Illinois Fighting Illini Team Overview
Late on, Illinois has covered four of its previous five games and gone over the total in three of its last four outings. Kasparas Jakucionis is first among Illinois scorers with 15.0 points per game.
Overall, the Illinois Fighting Illini are 20-11 straight up, 15-15-1 against the spread, and 19-12 over/under the sportsbook total. Illinois has national metrics of 11th for scoring offense, 166th for field goal percentage, 327th for 3-point field goal percentage, 56th for free throw percentage, and 2nd for offensive rebounding. While defensively, Illinois is 229th for scoring defense, 68th for field goal percentage permitted, 101st for 3-point field goal percentage allowed, and 134th for defensive rebounding.
Rodney Rice scored 18 of his game-high 26 points in the first nine minutes Friday night. Hence, Maryland emphatically advanced to the semifinals of the Big Ten Conference tournament by routing 7th-seeded Illinois 88-65 in Indianapolis. Rice was 7 of 9 from 3-point range, converting a pair of 4-point plays, as the Terrapins moved on to a matchup with No. 3 Michigan or 6th-seeded Purdue. Namely, Derik Queen added 19 points and 10 rebounds in just 23 minutes, while Ja’Kobi Gillespie chipped in 12 points and nine assists.
Jordan Geronimo came off the bench to tally 11 points, and Julian Reese hit for 10 as Maryland canned 11 of 23 3-pointers and committed only three turnovers. It earned a whopping 22-0 advantage in points off turnovers.
Freshmen Kasparas Jakucionis and Will Riley each scored 15 points for the Fighting Illini. Also, Kylan Boswell added 14, but it wasn’t enough. Illinois made only 23 of 63 shots from the field and coughed up 17 turnovers.
Rice was 7 of 9 from 3-point range, converting a pair of 4-point plays as the Terrapins moved on. Derik Queen added 19 points and 10 rebounds in just 23 minutes. While Ja’Kobi Gillespie chipped in 12 points and nine assists.
Jordan Geronimo came off the bench to tally 11 points, and Julian Reese hit for 10. In turn, Maryland canned 11 of 23 3-pointers and committed only three turnovers. It earned a whopping 22-0 advantage in points off turnovers.
The Illini will not know their opponent until late Wednesday night, when Xavier and Texas will battle it out in Dayton, Ohio. Illinois appears to have decisive advantages over both potential foes. Yet it would be naive to think that one isn’t at least a slightly more favorable matchup than the other.