Illinois Fighting Illini vs Northwestern Wildcats Prediction, 1/4/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Illinois Fighting Illini vs Northwestern Wildcats

Date: Wednesday, January 4, 2023

Location: Welsh-Ryan Arena in Evanston, IL

TV: Youtube TV

The Illinois Fighting Illini (9-4) are traveling to Welsh-Ryan Arena on Wednesday where they will try to defeat the Northwestern Wildcats (10-3).

The Illinois Fighting Illini took the court against Bethune-Cookman and went home with a win by a final score of 85-52 in their last game. Illinois finished having earned a 49.2% field goal percentage (29 out of 59) and made 8 of their 28 shots from distance. At the charity stripe, the Fighting Illini converted 19 of their 27 tries for a rate of 70.4%. In terms of rebounding, they compiled a total of 38 with 9 of them being of the offensive variety. They also dished out 17 assists in this matchup while forcing the other team into 20 turnovers and getting 10 steals. In the matter of defense, Illinois allowed the other team to shoot 29.3% from the field on 17 of 58 shooting. Bethune-Cookman distributed 6 assists and had 12 steals for this game. In addition, Bethune-Cookman pulled down 33 rebounds (9 offensive, 24 defensive), but finished the game with no rejections. Bethune-Cookman shot 75.0% when shooting free throws by burying 15 of their 20 tries. They knocked down 3 of their 13 shots from three-point range. When it comes to fouls, the Fighting Illini finished with 16 and Bethune-Cookman totaled 21 fouls.

Dain Dainja is someone who was a factor for this game. He recorded 22 points on 8 out of 10 shooting. He saw the court for 26 minutes and snagged 6 boards. He finished the contest at 80.0% from the floor and also distributed 2 dimes.

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Illinois will play this contest with a win-loss record of 9-4 on the year. They lose possession via turnover 15.2 times per contest and as a team they commit 16.4 personal fouls per game. As a team, Illinois is pulling in 39.7 rebounds per game and is sitting with 186 assists this year, which ranks 228th in the country in terms of passing the rock. The Fighting Illini are connecting on 33.0% on shots from downtown (118 of 358) and 65.8% from the charity stripe. They have an average of 78.1 points per outing (61st in D-1) while hitting 46.5% from the floor.

On defense, the Fighting Illini have forced 16.5 turnovers per game while drawing 18.8 personal fouls. They currently rank 57th in D-1 in allowing assists to the opposition with 148 conceded so far this season. The Fighting Illini defense is allowing and opponent field goal percentage of 39.3% (297 of 755) and they relinquish 32.7 boards per contest as a unit. They relinquish 32.7% on shots from downtown and they rank 60th in D-1 in points per game from their opponents (63.7).

In their last game, the Northwestern Wildcats took a defeat with a final score of 73-57 when they faced Ohio State. In the matter of cleaning the glass, Northwestern allowed Ohio State to collect 42 in total (7 offensive). They shot 40.0% from beyond the perimeter by connecting on 6 out of 15 and ended up going 15 of 20 at the free throw line (75.0%). The Wildcats permitted Ohio State to bury 26 of 56 tries from the field which gave them a rate of 46.4% in the game. When the final whistle blew, the Wildcats finished shooting 19 for 67 from the field which gave them a percentage of 28.4%. In relation to shots from distance, Northwestern made 9 of 31 attempts (29.0%). They were able to make 10 of them for a percentage of 58.8%. Ohio State was called for 13 fouls in the game which got the Wildcats to the charity stripe for a total of 17 shots. They also coughed it up 7 times, while recording 5 steals in this game. The Wildcats were able to collect 22 defensive rebounds and 12 offensive boards for a total of 34 for the game.

Chase Audige ended up having an impact for the Wildcats for the matchup. He knocked down 6 out of 17 for this contest giving him a rate of 35.3%, and added 2 rebounds. He earned 16 points in his 37 mins of playing time and had 2 dimes in this matchup.

Northwestern has a win-loss record of 10-3 so far this season. When it comes to executing on offense, the Wildcats are connecting on 38.4% from the field, which ranks 356th in Division 1. Northwestern has accumulated 875 points on the year (67.3 per game) and they pull in 39.2 rebounds per contest. They are assisting teammates 13.8 times per game (163rd in college hoops) and they turn it over 11.5 times per contest. The Wildcats are committing 15.7 fouls per game and they shoot 75.0% from the charity stripe.

The Northwestern defense allows 32.3% on shots from beyond the arc (100 of 310) and opponents are converting on 69.1% of their free throw shots. They have allowed 12.2 assists and 35.7 rebounds per contest, which ranks them 162nd and 258th in the country. The Wildcats on the defensive end are ranked 8th in college basketball in PPG given up with 57.0. They are forcing 15.7 TO's per game and have allowed teams to shoot 36.0% from the field (4th in college hoops).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Illinois

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