Valparaiso Beacons vs Illinois Fighting Illini Prediction, 11/17/2023 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Valparaiso Beacons vs Illinois Fighting Illini

Date: Friday, November 17, 2023

Location: State Farm Center in Champaign, IL

TV: ESPN+

The Valparaiso Beacons (2-1) are hitting the road to State Farm Center on Friday where they will take on the Illinois Fighting Illini (2-1).

The Valparaiso Beacons faced Green Bay and took home the win by a score of 64-59 in their last game. Valparaiso ended the contest with a 36.2% FG percentage (21 of 58) and buried 4 of 18 3-point attempts. From the charity stripe, the Beacons knocked down 18 of their 25 tries for a percentage of 72.0%. Concerning grabbing rebounds, they compiled 31 with 7 of them being offensive. They also doled out 10 assists for the matchup while forcing the other team into 10 turnovers and getting 6 steals. With respect to defense, Valparaiso allowed their opponent to shoot 42.6% from the field on 26 out of 61 shooting. Green Bay totaled 5 assists and had 3 steals in this contest. On top of that, Green Bay snagged 40 boards (9 offensive, 31 defensive), but finished the game with no rejections. Green Bay finished the game at 45.5% at the charity stripe by knocking down 5 of 11 shots. They also knocked down 2 out of their 18 attempts from beyond the perimeter. In the matter of personal fouls, the Beacons walked away with 13 while Green Bay had 17 personal fouls.

Jaxon Edwards is one player who was a factor for this game. He recorded 19 points on 8 of 15 shooting. He was on the court for 34 mins and collected 8 rebounds. He finished the game shooting 53.3% from the field and also totaled 1 assist.

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Valparaiso will take the court with a win-loss record of 2-1 on the campaign. They are averaging 73.3 pts per game (227th in D-1) while shooting 38.9% from the floor. The Beacons are shooting 28.6% on shots from downtown (20 of 70) and 70.3% from the free throw line. As a unit, Valparaiso is snagging 41.3 boards per game and has totaled 35 dimes for the season, which has them ranked 240th in D-1 in terms of passing the rock. They turn the ball over 11.0 times per contest and as a unit they are committing 14.7 fouls on a nightly basis.

On defense, the Beacons have forced 16.7 turnovers every game while drawing 20.3 personal fouls. They are relinquishing 22.8% from 3-point land and they are 71st in Division 1 in PPG allowed (62.0). The Beacons are giving up a FG percentage of 38.5% (72 of 187) and they concede 40.3 rebounds per game as a basketball team. They are currently ranked 101st in college hoops in giving up assists with 28 surrendered for the campaign.

The last time they took the court, the Illinois Fighting Illini went home defeated by a final of 71-64 against Marquette. The Fighting Illini corralled 26 defensive boards and 11 offensive boards totaling 37 for the contest. They turned the ball over 15 times, while getting 6 steals for this game. Marquette committed 14 fouls in this matchup which took the Fighting Illini to the free throw line for a total of 13 tries. They were able to make 11 of those for a percentage of 84.6%. In relation to three-point shots, Illinois converted 11 out of their 33 tries (33.3%). Overall, the Fighting Illini went 21 for 60 from the floor which had them at 35.0%. The Fighting Illini allowed Marquette to knock down 27 of 62 tries from the field which had them shooting 43.5% for the game. They shot 29.4% from beyond the perimeter by connecting on 5 out of 17 and ended up going 12 of 20 at the charity stripe (60.0%). When discussing cleaning up the glass, Illinois permitted Marquette to grab 36 in all (9 on the offensive glass).

Terrence Shannon ended up having an impact for the Fighting Illini for this contest. He converted 6 out of 16 in the game giving him a field goal percentage of 37.5%, and added 2 rebounds. He tallied 21 points in his 35 mins on the hardwood and accumulated 2 assists in the matchup.

Illinois has a record of 2-1 so far this year. The Fighting Illini commit 12.0 fouls per contest and they shoot 59.6% from the charity stripe. They are assisting teammates 12.0 times per game (248th in college basketball) and they turn the ball over 12.0 times per contest. Illinois has scored 208 pts for the year (69.3 per contest) and they collect 42.0 boards per contest. When it comes to offense, the Fighting Illini are connecting on 43.9% from the field, which ranks 210th in the nation.

The Fighting Illini on defense are ranked 33rd in college hoops in points per game surrendered with 58.7. They are forcing 8.7 turnovers per game and have let teams shoot 36.4% from the floor (52nd in college hoops). The Illinois defense gives up 29.2% on three-point shots (14 of 48) and their opposition makes 57.8% of their shots from the free throw line. They allow 6.0 dimes and 36.7 boards on a nightly basis, which ranks 9th and 221st in those defensive categories.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Illinois

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