Illinois Fighting Illini vs Tennessee Volunteers Matchup

Read on to get betting odds and analysis in our Tennessee vs Illinois NCAA Basketball prediction and preview and see who we think will win and cover the spread in Champaign.

Tennessee vs Illinois Prediction

Betting on today's Volunteers and Fighting Illini game? Catch the action at State Farm Center in Champaign, IL, as the Fighting Illini hosts this showdown at 5:30 ET on FOX. Tennessee is the -1.5 point favorites in this non-conference matchup against Illinois. The over/under for the game is set at 147 points.

Tennessee vs. Illinois Matchup At A Glance

Sport: NCAAB
Teams: Tennessee Volunteers at Illinois Fighting Illini
Where: Champaign at State Farm Center
Date: Saturday, December 14th
Betting Odds TENN -1.5, TENN -131 | ILL +105 O/U 147

Volunteers Preview: Can the Volunteers Pull Off a Win at Champaign?

Tennessee improved to 9-0 on the season with a 75-62 win over Miami on Tuesday. The Volunteers were -15 point favorites going into the game but didn’t cover the spread. The total points for the game were 137, falling under the O/U line of 145.

Tennessee took control early, leading 38-25 at halftime. However, they allowed Miami to score 37 points in the 2nd half, matching their own 37 points after the break.

Volunteers Offense Breakdown

In their last game, Tennessee's offense put up 75 points, shooting 48.1% from the field and 40% from beyond the arc, hitting 10 threes. Their effective field goal percentage was 57.7%, and they connected on 83.3% of their free throws, going 15-for-18.

Chaz Lanier led the way with 22 points, hitting 4 of 7 from deep, while Igor Miličić Jr. added 16 points and 9 rebounds. Lynn Kidd contributed 14 points and 12 rebounds, and Zakai Zeigler dished out 10 assists to go with his 13 points.

Volunteers Team Defense

Even with Tennessee's defense giving up 62 points, they allowed their opponent to shoot 48% from the field, including 55% on two-point attempts. The Volunteers also struggled to contain the three-point line, where their opponent hit 10 of 25 shots for 40%.

Tennessee sent their opponent to the free-throw line 18 times, where they converted 15 of those attempts for 83%. The Volunteers did a solid job on the boards, giving up just 5 offensive rebounds.

Fighting Illini Preview: Do the Fighting Illini Stand a Chance at Home?

Illinois Fighting Illini Recent Game/Games

Illinois improved to 7-2 on the season with an 86-80 win over Wisconsin on Tuesday. The Illini were favored by 7.5 points at home but didn’t cover the spread. The game’s total points of 166 exceeded the over/under line of 153.5.

Illinois led 39-35 at halftime and scored 47 points in the 2nd half while allowing 45. Though they got the win, the Illini will look to tighten up defensively moving forward.

Fighting Illini Offense Breakdown

Illinois put up 86 points in their last game, shooting 42.2% from the field with an effective field goal percentage of 50%. They hit 54.8% of their two-point attempts, but struggled from beyond the arc, connecting on just 30.3% of their 33 three-point tries. At the free-throw line, they were nearly automatic, hitting 22 of 25 for 88%.

The Illini grabbed 15 offensive rebounds and dished out 15 assists. Kasparas Jakucionis led the way with 24 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists, shooting 53.3% overall and 50% from three. Tre White added 23 points and 8 rebounds, shooting 75% from the field and hitting 2 of 3 from deep.

Fighting Illini Team Defense

Illinois gave up 80 points in their last game, with their opponents shooting 42% from the field. They allowed 54% shooting on two-point attempts, with 17 makes on 31 tries.

From beyond the arc, Illinois' defense held their opponents to 30% shooting, with 10 threes made on 33 attempts. They also sent the other team to the line 25 times, where they hit 22 free throws, an 88% rate. Illinois allowed 15 offensive rebounds.

Volunteers vs Fighting Illini Betting Odds, Trends & Analysis

In their last three road games, Tennessee has averaged 69 points per game while allowing 62. The team's record in this stretch was 2-1 while going 2-1 vs. the spread.
Although Illinois has a straight up record of 1-2 in their last three home games, they have not held up as well vs the spread going 1-2. The team averaged 63 points per game in these games.
Going back to their previous ten games as the underdog, Illinois has an ATS mark of 5-4-1 while going 4-6 straight up.
The Volunteers have played well in their last three games as the betting favorite, going 3-0 straight up and 2-1 against the spread.