The Cleveland State Vikings will hit the floor running against the visiting Illinois-Chicago Flames Thursday, looking to improve their record and boost wagering bankrolls in the process.

Cleveland State battles the Flames, currently sitting with a 5-9 mark (6-6 ATS). The OVER/UNDER records, always important for totals bettors, are 4-7-1 for the Vikings and 8-4 for the Flames.



View Illinois-Chicago vs Cleveland State Odds and Stats.

Betting Line:
College basketball odds makers opened the Vikings as 16-point favorites in this matchupl.

Power Rankings / Prediction:
It's a betting matchup between the No. 189-rated Vikings and the No. 215-ranked Flames, according to the latest pro hoops power rankings here at Odds Shark. Prediction formulas run on this game indicate a possible 69-59 result in favor of the Vikings.



How They Match Up:
When it comes to rebounds, the visiting Flames rank No. 72 in NCAA Division 1 with 37.7 per game. That compares with Cleveland State’s No. 315 ranking in that category. The story is different when it comes to three-point shooting where Cleveland State is college basketball's No. 166-ranked team at 6.3 per game, while the Flames rate No. 144 with 6.5 per game.

Defensively, Illinois-Chicago features the nation's No. 252-rated defense on the road, allowing 74.7 points per game. Cleveland State, meanwhile, comes in at No. 233 nationally in scoring at home.

Illinois-Chicago lost its last outing, a 74-70 result against Wright State on December 31. They failed to cover in that game as a 1.5-point underdog. The Flames endured a 74-70 loss at the hands of the Raiders on Saturday, despite a 22-point effort from Darrin Williams at UIC Pavilion.

In their last action, Cleveland State was a 73-67 loser at home against Youngstown State. They failed to cover the 12.5–point spread as favorites. The Vikings endured a 73-67 loss at the hands of the Penguins on Saturday, despite a 21-point effort from Jeremy Montgomery at Wolstein Center.


Illinois-Chicago Flames Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 3-7
Before playing Youngstown State are 3-7
After playing Wright State are 4-6
After a loss are 5-5

Cleveland State Vikings Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 3-7
Before playing Loyola of Chicago are 7-3
After playing Youngstown State are 7-3
After a loss are 7-3

A few Flames at Vikings trends to consider:
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Illinois-Chicago's last 5 games when playing on the road against Cleveland State
The total has gone OVER in 10 of Illinois-Chicago's last 11 games on the road
Illinois-Chicago is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games on the road
Illinois-Chicago is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Cleveland State
Cleveland State is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Illinois-Chicago
Cleveland State is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Illinois-Chicago
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Cleveland State's last 5 games when playing at home against Illinois-Chicago
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Cleveland State's last 9 games when playing Illinois-Chicago


Next up:
Illinois-Chicago at Youngstown State, Saturday, January 7
Cleveland State home to Loyola of Chicago, Saturday, January 7