Illinois vs Xavier Musketeers Prediction & Picks - NCAA Basketball
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by Matt Lowrimore | in NCAA Basketball Picks
Another one of the intriguing first-round games on Friday will see the 11th-seeded Xavier Musketeers take on the 6th-seeded Illinois Fighting Illini in the Midwest Region. Let’s take a look at the match statistics and predictions for this first-round game between the Musketeers and Fighting Illini.
Xavier enters this game with a record of 22-11. The Musketeers have already played a game in this tournament, beating Texas in the First Four round on Wednesday night. Xavier was down by 8 points at halftime and by as many as 10 in the second half before mounting a rally which allowed them to close the gap and pull away with an 86-80 win. Further, the Musketeers had 5 players score at least 10 points, showing they are a very balanced team this season.
As for Illinois, they enter this game with a record of 21-12, earning an at-large bid into the NCAA tournament. The Fighting Illini beat Iowa in the second round of the Big Ten tournament before losing to Maryland in the Big Ten quarterfinals. This will be Illinois’ 35th NCAA tournament appearance and their 5th consecutive appearance.
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Illinois vs Xavier Musketeers Form
Illinois and Xavier Musketeers Latest Matches
3/4 (75%)
1/4 (25%)
Mar 30, 2024 - NCAA Basketball
Mar 28, 2024 - NCAA Basketball
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Mar 21, 2024 - NCAA Basketball
2/2 (100%)
0/2 (0%)
Mar 23, 2024 - NCAA Basketball
Mar 21, 2024 - NCAA Basketball
1/2 (50%)
1/2 (50%)
Mar 30, 2024 - NCAA Basketball
Mar 28, 2024 - NCAA Basketball
1/1 (100%)
0/1 (0%)
Mar 19, 2025 - NCAA Basketball
1/1 (100%)
0/1 (0%)
Mar 19, 2025 - NCAA Basketball
Illinois - Xavier Musketeers Key Points
- Xavier is 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games
- Xavier 15-4-1 ATS in their last 20 games vs the Big Ten
- Xavier is 4-2 ATS in their last 6 games
- Xavier is 0-5 ATS in their last 5 games vs the Big East
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Our Illinois vs Xavier Musketeers Prediction
Despite Illinois being the small favorite, this game looks to be evenly matched. The Fighting Illini holds the edge in scoring offense, averaging 83.8 points per game, compared to Xavier, who averages about 78 points per game.
That being said, the Musketeers have the better defense, allowing 71.1 points per game, compared to Illinois, who allows 74.6 points per game. The area that may end up being the difference in this matchup is three-point shooting. The Fighting Illini are 322nd in the country, shooting 31.1% from long range, while Xavier are the sixth best three-point shooting team at 39.1%.
Taking Xavier’s clear edge at shooting into account and the fact that they have already played a game in this tournament, our Xavier Musketeers vs Illinois Fighting Illini prediction is Xavier +3.5.All tips are fully researched and given in good faith, but profits cannot be guaranteed.
