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The reigning champion and top overall seed Connecticut Huskies will look to continue their dominant run through the 2024 NCAA Tournament in an Elite Eight matchup versus the No. 3 Illinois Fighting Illini on Saturday. The Huskies easily handled San Diego State in the Sweet 16, winning by 30 points, and they’ve won all three of their 2024 March Madness games by double-digits. Meanwhile, the Illini upset 2-seed Iowa State in Thursday’s Sweet 16 matchup, sending Illinois to its first Elite Eight since 2005.
Tipoff is scheduled for 6:09 p.m. ET from TD Garden in Boston. The Huskies are favored by 8.5 points in the latest UConn vs. Illinois odds via SportsLine consensus, while the over/under for total points scored is 155. Before making any Illinois vs. UConn picks, you need to check out the college basketball analysis from the SportsLine Projection Model.
The model simulates every Div. I college basketball game 10,000 times. It enters the Sweet 16 round of the 2024 NCAA tournament on a 152-109 roll on all top-rated college basketball picks dating back to last season, returning more than $1,800 for $100 players. It also has a strong 32-21 (+890) record on top-rated spread picks this season, and it called 13 Sweet 16 teams this year. Anyone following it has seen huge returns.
Now, the model has set its sights on UConn vs. Illinois and just locked in its March Madness predictions. You can visit SportsLine now to see the model’s picks. Here are several college basketball odds and betting lines and trends for Illinois vs. UConn:
- UConn vs. Illinois spread: Huskies -8.5
- UConn vs. Illinois over/under: 155 points
- UConn vs. Illinois money line: Huskies -397, Fighting Illini +308
- UCONN: The Huskies rank fifth nationally in field goal percentage (49.7%).
- ILL: The Illini are ninth in the country in points per game (84.2).
- UConn vs. Illinois picks: See picks at SportsLine
Why UConn can cover
The Huskies have won their last 10 games overall, which includes winning the Big East Tournament, as well as winning every game in the NCAA Tournament 2024 by double-digits. The team has exceptional balance on both ends of the court, ranking first in KenPom’s offensive efficiency and sixth in his defensive efficiency rankings. Five different Huskies are averaging in double-figures, led by Tristen Newton’s 15.3 points per game.
Newton is a consensus first-team All-American, and he also ranks second in the Big East with 6.1 assists per game. The fifth-year senior had a 20-point, 10-assist outing in the Round of 32 before dropping 17 points on San Diego State in the Sweet 16. That was one fewer point than Cam Spencer’s team-high of 18 points, and he’s also a fifth-year senior who makes UConn’s offense so dangerous. Spencer leads the Big East with 44.1% on 3-point attempts, while he’s also logged three steals in back-to-back games. See which team to back at SportsLine.
Why Illinois can cover
After easily handling a pair of double-digit seeds through the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament, Illinois stepped up in class versus 2-seed Iowa State in the Sweet 16 and pulled off the upset. The Illini scored 72 points on a team that had allowed an average of just 57 points over its previous 10 games, and it marked Illinois’ seventh consecutive victory. The Big Ten Tournament champion boasts as complete an offense as any team in Division I. Illinois ranks in the top 10 in points per game and offensive rating, while having a bona fide star in Terrence Shannon Jr, who ranks third nationally with 23.5 points per game.
Shannon has elevated his game when it matters most as he had a huge Big Ten Tournament, and now, the NCAA Tournament. His 246 points scored in the month of March are the most by any player in any season since 2011-12. He also brings it on the other end of the court as he’s logged multiple steals in every March Madness game, and only one player has more steals than his seven in the 2024 NCAA Tournament. See which team to back at SportsLine.
How to make UConn vs. Illinois picks
SportsLine’s model is leaning Under on the total, projecting the teams to combine for 153 points. The model also says one side of the spread hits in over 50% of simulations. You can see the picks only at SportsLine.
So who wins Illinois vs. UConn, and which side of the spread hits over 50% of the time? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the UConn vs. Illinois spread you need to jump on, all from the model on a 152-109 roll on its top-rated college basketball picks, and find out.
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