YTD: 6-9

Iowa (-2) @ Nebraska

Iowa is scrambling to bolster their NCAA tournament resume as the Big 10 regular season nears it’s end. With Wisconsin running away from the pack, the rest of the league will be fighting for tournament seeding in the next 5 games. Iowa, with a bit of a disappointing record, finds itself in the middle of the pack but also has one of the easiest remaining schedules in the conference which could allow them to climb the standings by the time the postseason comes around. Today’s game at Nebraska is a great opportunity for Iowa to showcase their road toughness to the selection committee as the Cornhuskers come into this game a solid 10-4 on their home court. Iowa has played great perimeter defense this season, and expect them to have an answer for at least one of Nebraska’s prolific scorers in Terran Petteway and Shavon Shields. Expect Jarrod Uthoff to be the difference as he so often is for the Hawkeyes, as his dynamic skills on the offensive and defensive end take over and frustrate Nebraska’s shooters and ball handlers. It’s never easy to win on the road in the Big 10, but Iowa is a veteran team and we expect them to take this one and add an impressive win to their resume.

Illinois (+2.5) vs. Michigan State

Illinois is a much different team when they have their leading scorer and team captain Rayvonte Rice on the court. Even without him, Illinois managed to maintain a 12-1 record on their home floor. These two teams played back on February 7th in East Lansing with Illinois overcoming a poor 3-point shooting performance to hold on to a 59-54 win. Illinois is a very underrated team that deserves a lot more consideration for the NCAA tournament than they’ve been getting, and a season sweep against the Spartans will do a lot to help their case. Although Illinois is only 11-13 ATS this season, having Rice back in their lineup greatly increases their offensive potential and we think he will be the X-factor in this game. It will surely be close, as most Big 10 games are, but the home court advantage will be too much for the Spartans to overcome in this one. Illinois will ride their scoring trio of Rice, Malcolm Hill, and Kendrick Nunn to a very important win.