College Basketball Betting: Maryland Vs. Illinois Best Bets

• The Illinois Fighting Illini are 11.5-point favorites over the Maryland Terrapins.
• Maryland comes back with +500 odds on the moneyline as the underdog.
• The total for the game has -110 odds on both sides of the 140.5 line.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The Maryland Terrapins will continue to search for their first conference win, this time against the Illinois Fighting Illini. The odds don’t give them a favorable chance to do so.

Spread/Moneyline Odds

Illinois has been among the more disappointing teams this season, starting the year ranked 11th and then subsequently falling out of the rankings altogether. However, legal online betting sites are expecting them to pick up a win in their next matchup against Maryland on Thursday night.

Maryland is 8-5 overall, but is winless in two games against other Big Ten opponents. The most glaring weakness for the Terps is their inability to shoot efficiently from the floor. They are ranked 257th in the country in field goal percentage as a team, sitting at 42.59%. Conversely, Illinois ranks 42nd nationally with their 47.53% shooting as a team.

This has resulted in the Fighting Illini being a top 25 scoring offense in the country, but ranking even better according to Ken Pomeroy’s rankings. Those looking to bet on the game are likely better off taking Illinois on both the spread as well as the moneyline.

Despite Illinois seeming to be the far better team, Maryland has fared well historically in this matchup, winning four of the last five meetings between the two including the games in each of the last three seasons.

Betting The Total: 140.5 Points

Those betting on college basketball may be more inclined to bet on the total of the game as there are strong arguments to make in either direction.

Illinois is strong on both sides of the ball, scoring 80.8 points per game while allowing just 64.6 points per game. While Maryland’s aforementioned shooting struggles leave them scoring just 70.7 points and allowing 66.9 points per game. Only four of Maryland’s 13 games have gone OVER this total while seven of Illinois’ 13 games have done the same.

News tags: Big Ten | College Basketball | Illinois Fighting Illini | Maryland Terrapins