• Coming off its first loss of the season, Alabama hosts Illinois at Legacy Arena in Birmingham on Wednesday
• Illinois is 3-0 but hasn’t played a rated better than #200 at KenPom
• Below, see the Illinois vs Alabama predictions and best available odds

An intriguing Big Ten/SEC clash headlines Wednesday night’s college basketball schedule as Illinois (3-0, 0-0 away, 2-1 ATS) visit #8 Alabama (3-1, 3-0 home, 1-3 ATS) . While tonight’s game at Legacy Arena in Birmingham isn’t technically a home game for Alabama, it’s just a 53-minute drive from Tuscaloosa, and Bama is priced like a home-court favorite, laying 8.5 points in tonight’s college basketball odds. Tonight’s game will be broadcast on the SEC Network at 9:00 pm ET.

Illinois vs Alabama Predictions

• Illinois +8.5 (-110) at Fanatics
  

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Sascha Paruk’s 2024-25 NCAAM betting record: 1-0 (+0.95 units). All wagers one unite unless expressly stated otherwise. 

Few teams in the nation are dealing with as much roster turnover as the Illini, who lost Terrence Shannon Jr (NBA), Marcus Domask (graduation), Dain Dainja (transfer), Coleman Hawkins (graduation), Quincy Guerrier (graduation), and Luke Goode (transfer), which comprised six of the team’s top-seven scorers, including the nation’s third-leading scorer in the form of Shannon.

Brad Underwood wasn’t particularly successful in the transfer portal, either, adding just one top-100 transfer (Arizona’s Kylan Boswell) but he does appear to have one the country’s best freshman classes, and it’s paying immediate dividends. Early in the season, the Illini’s two leading scorers are both first-year players: Canadian forward Will Riley (17.7 PPG, 6.0 RPG), the #12 recruit on the continent per ESPN, and Croatian center Tomislav Ivisic (17.3 PPG, 9.0 RPG).

Illinois ran over its first two opponents – Eastern Illinois (112-67) and SIUE (90-58) – before a 66-54 win over Oakland as 24-point chalk. In reality, the outcome against Oakland was never in doubt. The Illini started the game on a 22-9 run and the margin was in double-figures for the entire final 16 minutes of the game.

The Tide have considerably more continuity, with both Mark Sears (21.5, 4.0 APG), Grant Nelson (11.9 PPG, 5.9 RPG), and Latrell Wrightsell Jr (8.9 PPG, 3.0 RPG) back as fifth-year seniors.  Nate Oats also bolstered his roster with some big transfers, including highly-sought-after Clifford Omoruyi () from Rutgers, plsu Chris Youngblood from USF and Aden Holloway from Auburn to help compensate for the losses of Aaron Estrada (graduation) and Rylan Griffen (transfer for Kansas).

Early returns haven’t been great for the Tide. After a 110-54 rout of UNC Asheville in its opener, they were held to single-digit wins over #105 Arkansas St (88-79) and #102 McNeese (72-64) before a road loss at Purdue (87-78) last Friday.

Alabama’s porous defense, which finished last season an ugly 111th at KenPom, was on full display, allowing the Boilermakers to shoot 56.2% from three.

Alabama may run the Illini out of the building with an onslaught of threes, but so far Illinois’ defense – especially on the perimeter – has been excellent. They’ve limited their first three opponents to just 29.2% from beyond the arc. And I expect Illinois to have its way in the post with the trio of Ivisic (7’1), Riley (6’8), and Evansville transfer Ben Humrichous (6’9), who are averaging a combined 21.3 RPG.

Best Available Illinois vs Alabama Odds

The Illinois/Alabama spread is 8.5 at most books, but the line has come down to 8.0 at bet365 and DraftKings. ESPN Bet currently has the best price on the Illini to win straight-up at +290, while DraftKings has the best odds on the Alabama moneyline (-345).

There is a half-point range in the game total. Over bettors can get O167.5 at -115 at FanDuel, while Under bettors should grab U168.0 (-110) at Caesars Sportsbook.

Alabama didn’t drop too fare in the March Madness odds after losing to Purdue. A +1100 bet to win the national championship at the start of the season, the Tide are now +1200. Illinois is roughly a +6000 longshot.

The post Illinois vs Alabama Predictions & Best Odds (Nov. 20) appeared first on Sports Betting Dime.