Its Tuesday, February 11, and the UCLA Bruins (18-6, 9-4) and the Fighting Illini of Illinois (16-8, 8-6) meet tonight at State Farm Center in Champaign.
UCLA has won seven in a row to climb into a tie for fourth in the Big Ten with No. 16 Wisconsin. Illinois is just 5-5 in their last ten and yet they sit just two games behind UCLA in the loss column in seventh.
The Fighting Illini are 10-3 at home this season while the Bruins are 3-3 on the road in their first Big Ten campaign.
Lets dive into the matchup and offer some information and possibly a sweat or two.
We’ve got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on the how to catch the opening tip, recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks & best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts.
Game details & how to watch Bruins at Fighting Illini
- Date: Tuesday, February 11, 2025
- Time: 8:00PM EST
- Site: State Farm Center
- City: Champaign, IL
- Network/Streaming: Peacock
Never miss a second of the action and stay up to date with all the latest scores and player news. Check out our day-by-day NCAA Basketball Schedule Page that includes live game updates.
Game odds for Bruins at Fighting Illini
*odds courtesy of BetMGM
- Odds: Bruins (+225), Fighting Illini (-275)
- Spread: Fighting Illini -6.5
- Total: 149.5 points
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Expert picks & predictions for UCLA at Illinois
NBC Sports Bet Best Bet
Vaughn Dalzell (@VmoneySport) expects the home team to get off to a solid start: Illinois 1H Team Total Over 36.5 (-115)
“UCLA has been on the West Coast for seven straight games dating back to Jan. 17. UCLA has not fared well on the East Coast in Big Ten play. The Bruins lost three straight at Nebraska, Maryland, and Rutgers (0-3 ATS). UCLA’s only road wins in conference play have come against former Pac-12 opponents, so I like this spot for the Illini to start fast and go Over the first half team total of 36.5. I strongly lean Illinois -6.5 and will likely bet this at -5.5 or -5 if it comes back down.”
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Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the NCAA calendar based on data points like past performance, player matchups, injuries, and the schedule.
Once the model is finished running, we put its projection next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager.
UCLA Bruins at Illinois Fighting Illini Best Bets
Here are the best bets our model is projecting for today’s Bruins & Fighting Illini game:
- Moneyline: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the Illinois on the Moneyline.
- Spread: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play ATS on the UCLA at +6.
- Total: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play on the under on the Game Total of 149.5.
Bruins at Fighting Illini: Top betting trends and recent stats
- Illinois has won 14 of its last 20 home games against teams with a winning record
- 4 of UCLA’s last 5 games (80%) have stayed under the Total
- Illinois has covered in 8 of its 13 home games this season
If you’re looking for more key trends and stats around the spread, moneyline and total for every single game on the schedule today, check out our NCAA Basketball Top Trends Tool on NBCSports.com!
Follow our experts on socials to keep up with all the latest content from the staff:
· Jay Croucher (@croucherJD)
· Drew Dinsick (@whale_capper)
· Vaughn Dalzell (@VmoneySports)
· Brad Thomas (@MrBradThomas)
