College Basketball Picks & Predictions for Saturday, January 22, 2011
By Drew Sharper
CHAMPAIGNE, IL (TheSpread) – No. 1 Ohio State faces its toughest test yet as it hits the road to take on No. 23 Illinois on Saturday afternoon. Here is my pick for this game.
View Current College Basketball Odds
Ohio State is 19-0 on the year and 5-0 on the road while Illinois is 14-5 on the season and 10-0 at home. Ohio State is 6-0 in Big Ten play while Illinois is 4-2.
Oddsmakers from online sportsbook SBGGLOBAL.com have released their odds for this game and made Ohio State a 1.5-point favorite at Illinois on Saturday. The over/under has not been set for this game. Here is a look at the trends and my pick for tonight’s game.
Ohio State vs. Illinois, 12:00 PM ET
Illinois is 6-2 against the spread in their last 8 games in the Big Ten and 5-2 ATS in their last 7 games at home. Ohio State is just 1-4 ATS in their last 5 Big Ten games and 3-7 ATS in their last 10 games on Saturdays. My pick goes with Illinois as the Illini are awfully tough at home and to be getting points is too hard to pass up. It should be close, but I like the Illini to win outright.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL FREE PICK: ILLINOIS +1.5