Penn State Nittany Lions vs Illinois Fighting Illini Prediction, 12/10/2022 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Penn State Nittany Lions vs Illinois Fighting Illini

Date: Saturday, December 10, 2022

Location: State Farm Center in Champaign, IL

TV: Hulu Live TV

State Farm Center is where the Illinois Fighting Illini (7-2) will attempt to beat the Penn State Nittany Lions (6-3) on Saturday.

The Penn State Nittany Lions faced Michigan State and went home with a loss by a final score of 67-58 in their last contest. In regard to fouls, the Nittany Lions ended up with 15 and Michigan State had 14 fouls. They also made 6 out of their 14 shots from 3-point land. Michigan State finished the game shooting 81.8% from the free throw line by making 9 of their 11 tries. In addition, Michigan State collected 38 rebounds (4 offensive, 34 defensive), but wasn't able to record a rejection. Michigan State recorded 13 dimes and had 2 steals for this game. When discussing defending, Penn State allowed their opponent to shoot 43.3% from the floor on 26 of 60 shooting. They also recorded 11 dimes for the game in addition to forcing 8 turnovers and having 4 steals. In the matter of rebounding, they compiled a total of 33 with 5 of them being on the offensive end. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Nittany Lions knocked down 12 of 18 shots for a rate of 66.7%. Penn State ended having earned a 34.5% field goal percentage (19 of 55) and converted 8 out of their 27 shots from 3-point land.

Jalen Pickett is one guy who came through in this contest. He scored 13 points on 5 out of 14 shooting. He was on the court for 38 minutes and also collected 17 boards. He finished 35.7% from the floor and dished out 8 assists.

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Penn State enters this matchup with a win-loss mark of 6-3 so far this season. They average 74.8 points per contest (141st in the country) while shooting 45.6% from the floor. The Nittany Lions are hitting 39.3% on three-point shots (105 of 267) and 76.8% from the free throw line. As a team, Penn State is pulling down 35.0 boards per contest and is sitting with 141 dimes on the season, which is 89th in the nation in terms of passing. They are turning it over 9.8 times per game and as a squad they commit 15.6 fouls every game.

On the defensive end of the court, the Nittany Lions are forcing their opponents into 10.1 turnovers per game and they draw 13.9 fouls. They surrender 31.9% on 3-point attempts while they are 147th in college basketball in PPG allowed (67.2). The Nittany Lions defensively are allowing a FG percentage of 41.0% (221 of 539) and they relinquish 35.6 boards per game as a squad. They are 261st in D-1 in giving up assists to the opposition with 126 conceded this season.

The last time they took the court, the Illinois Fighting Illini took home the win by a final score of 85-78 when they played Texas. In relation to rebounding, Illinois permitted Texas to pull down 34 in total (10 offensive). They shot 31.8% from beyond the perimeter by connecting on 7 of 22 and finished the contest at 13 out of 19 at the free throw line (68.4%). The Fighting Illini allowed Texas to make 29 out of 69 attempts from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 42.0% for the contest. When this game wrapped up, the Fighting Illini ended up shooting 27 for 60 from the field which had them sitting at 45.0%. Concerning shooting from downtown, Illinois made 10 of their 23 attempts (43.5%). They were able to make 21 of the free throw tries for a rate of 67.7%. Texas earned 24 fouls for the contest which got the Fighting Illini to the free throw line for a total of 31 shots. They turned it over 16 times, while recording 7 steals in this contest. The Fighting Illini collected 30 defensive rebounds and 7 offensive rebounds for a total of 37 in this contest.

Matthew Mayer ended up being a major contributor for the Fighting Illini for the matchup. He converted 8 out of 10 for the game giving him a field goal percentage of 80.0%, and had 2 rebounds. He scored 21 points in his 28 mins on the court and earned 1 assist in this game.

Illinois has a win-loss record of 7-2 this season. As an offense, the Fighting Illini are shooting 47.6% from the floor, which ranks 73rd in Division 1. Illinois has accumulated 732 points so far this season (81.3 per contest) and they collect 40.2 boards per game. They are dishing out assists 15.4 times per game (76th in college basketball) and they lose possession by turning the ball over 15.1 times per contest. The Fighting Illini are committing 17.1 personal fouls per contest while shooting 66.5% from the free throw line.

The Illinois defense concedes 30.4% on shots from beyond the perimeter (52 of 171) and opponents are connecting on 69.2% of their foul shots. They have given up 11.6 dimes and 33.6 boards per contest, which ranks them 118th and 146th in college hoops. The Fighting Illini are ranked 53rd in college basketball in points allowed per contest with 62.4. They have forced 17.4 turnovers on a nightly basis and have let teams shoot 38.1% from the field (32nd in the nation).

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Illinois

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