College hoops betting interest focuses on the Illinois vs Missouri battle Thursday at Scottrade Center as the Fighting Illini look to defend home court and cover the NCAAB point spread.

Scottrade Center is the location for this game, which makes it a neutral-site matchup.

The Fighting Illini currently sports a 11-1 record overall in NCAAB action, and have posted a corresponding betting slate of 4-6 ATS. The Tigers are 11-0 and 5-1 ATS. Betting totals have seen the Fighting Illini produce a 4-6 OVER/UNDER record on the season, while the Tigers have gone 4-1-1 against the number.



View Missouri vs Illinois Odds and Stats.

Betting Line:
On the Sportsbook NCAAB line for this matchup, Illinois sat as 6-point underdogs.

Power Rankings / Prediction:
The Odds Shark Power Rankings have the Fighting Illini at No. 71 and the Tigers at No. 155 heading into this contest. Handicapping models at Odds Shark project a 96-80 result in favor of the Tigers.



How They Match Up:
In the paint, the rebound battle will feature Illinois's No. 174-rated squad against Missouri's No. 165-rated roster. And in long-range shooting, Illinois rates No. 160 in the country with 6.4 per game, while their foes tonight rank No. 30 nationally with 8.5 per match.

Defensively, Missouri features the nation's No. 1-rated defense on the road, allowing 0 points per game. Illinois, meanwhile, comes in at No. 237 nationally in scoring at home.

Missouri was a 94-56 Sportsbook in their most recent outing at home against William & Mary. They covered the 33–point spread as favorites. Missouri cruised to victory on Sunday, running William & Mary out of the gym and running up a 94-56 score at Mizzou Arena.

Illinois won its last outing, a 64-60 result against Cornell on December 19. They failed to cover in that game as a 16.5-point favorite. Illinois got 19 points from Meyers Leonard en route to a 64-60 victory over Cornell on Monday at University of Illinois Assembly Hall.


Missouri Tigers Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 7-3
Before playing Old Dominion are 2-0
After a win are 10-0

Illinois Fighting Illini Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 6-4
Before playing Minnesota are 6-4
After a win are 9-1

A few Tigers at Fighting Illini trends to consider:
Illinois is 11-1 SU in its last 12 games
Illinois is 9-2 SU in its last 11 games when playing Missouri
Illinois is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games


Next up:
Missouri at Old Dominion, Friday, December 30
Illinois home to Minnesota, Tuesday, December 27