Drexel Dragons vs Illinois Fighting Illini Prediction, 3/19/2021 College Basketball Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Drexel Dragons vs Illinois Fighting Illini

Date: Friday, March 19, 2021

Location: Indiana Farmers Coliseum in Indianapolis, IN

TV: TBS

Odds/Point Spread: Drexel (+21.5)

The Drexel Dragons (12-7) travel to Indiana Farmers Coliseum on Friday where they'll take on the Illinois Fighting Illini (23-6) in the NCAA Tournament. Illinois opens this contest as 21.5-point favorites. The over/under is set at 144.5.

Drexel will enter this contest with a record of 12-7 so far this season. The Dragons are shooting 37.2% on shots from downtown (138 of 371) and 77.7% from the charity stripe. They average 71.5 points per contest (171st in college basketball) while hitting 47.7% from the field. They lose possession via turnover 12.9 times per game and as a group they are committing 15.2 personal fouls on a nightly basis. As a team, Drexel is pulling down 33.9 rebounds per contest and is sitting with 288 assists this year, which has them ranked 214th in Division 1 in terms of passing. Defensively, the Dragons are forcing their opponents into 10.8 turnovers per contest and they draw 15.5 personal fouls. They rank 17th in Division 1 in giving up assists with 195 relinquished for the campaign. The Dragons defensively are giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 44.1% (468 of 1,061) and they concede 29.3 rebounds per game as a unit. They are relinquishing 32.1% on shots from distance and they are 80th in college basketball in points per game allowed (66.8).

The Drexel Dragons stepped onto the hardwood against the Elon Phoenix and took home the win by a score of 63-56 in their last game. Drexel ended the game having earned a 43.8% FG percentage (21 out of 48) and converted 10 of 17 three-point attempts. From the charity stripe, the Dragons knocked down 11 of 14 tries for a rate of 78.6%. In relation to pulling down boards, they collected 37 with 8 of them being offensive. They also distributed 11 assists for the contest as well as forcing the other team into 5 turnovers and earning 2 steals. In relation to defending, Drexel allowed the other team to go 41.0% from the floor on 25 of 61 shooting. Elon dished out 7 dimes and had 10 steals in this contest. Moreover, Elon pulled down 22 rebounds (5 offensive, 17 defensive) and added 1 block. Elon finished 66.7% at the charity stripe by burying 2 of their 3 shots. They knocked down 4 of their 19 shots from distance.

Xavier Bell is a player who was a factor in this game. He finished with 11 points on 4 out of 6 shooting. He played 19 mins and grabbed 3 rebounds. Bell shot 66.7% from the field and also recorded 1 assist. An additional guy that played a role in the game for the Dragons was Camren Wynter. He pulled down 3 rebounds in his 37 minutes on the court. He walked away from this one shooting 25.0% from the floor in this game by shooting 3-of-12 (8 points). Overall, Wynter earned 4 assists.

Illinois has a record of 23-6 for the year. As an offensive team, the Fighting Illini are hitting on 49.9% from the floor, which is ranked 16th in the nation. Illinois has 2,361 points this season (81.4 per game) and they grab 40.4 boards per contest. They are dishing out assists 16.3 times per contest (19th in college basketball) and they turn it over 13.2 times per contest. The Fighting Illini commit 17.9 fouls every game and they go 69.1% from the free throw line. The Fighting Illini on the defensive end are ranked 146th in college basketball in points allowed per contest with 69.2. They have forced 11.6 TO's every game and have let teams shoot 41.2% from the floor (61st in D-1). The Illinois defense concedes 32.7% from downtown (190 of 581) and their opposition makes 68.5% of their free throw attempts. They relinquish 11.1 dimes and 30.3 rebounds per contest, which ranks them 49th and 18th in college basketball.

The last time they took the court, the Illinois Fighting Illini walked away with a victory by a final of 91-88 when they played the Ohio State Buckeyes. The Fighting Illini earned 27 defensive rebounds and 13 offensive boards for a total of 40 for the contest. They gave up possession of the ball 10 times, while earning 5 steals for the matchup. The Buckeyes had 26 personal fouls in this contest which got the Fighting Illini to the free throw line for a total of 32 tries. They were able to convert 24 of those for a clip of 75.0%. When discussing 3-point attempts, Illinois converted 9 out of their 21 tries (42.9%). When the final whistle was blown, the Fighting Illini walked away from this one shooting 29 out of 64 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 45.3%. The Fighting Illini permitted the Buckeyes to knock down 29 of 65 attempts from the floor which gave them a percentage of 44.6% for this contest. They finished the game shooting 32.0% from 3-point land by shooting 8 out of 25 and ended up shooting 22 of 30 from the free throw line (73.3%). Regarding cleaning the glass, Illinois permitted Ohio State to grab 35 in total (8 offensive).

Ayo Dosunmu ended up being a major contributor for the Fighting Illini for the game. He knocked down 5 of 17 in the game for a field goal rate of 29.4%, and added 9 rebounds. Dosunmu earned 16 points in his 41 mins on the hardwood and accounted for 4 assists in this game. One more player that was pivotal for Illinois was Kofi Cockburn. He accumulated no assists in 29 minutes played, and he knocked down 5 out of 9 from the floor. Cockburn ended up shooting 55.6% from the field and also totaling 16 points and 9 boards.

Who will win tonight's college basketball game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Drexel (+21.5)

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