Drake vs Southern Illinois Prediction: Odds, Picks, Best Bets – Saturday, March 4, 2023

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The No. 3 seed Southern Illinois Salukis (23-9, 14-6 MVC) play in the MVC Tournament against the No. 2 seed Drake Bulldogs (25-7, 15-5 MVC) on Saturday at Enterprise Center, starting at 6:00 PM.

The Bulldogs are currently 5-point favorites against the Salukis. The over/under is 126.5 points for the game.

Drake vs. Southern Illinois Odds

Point Spread for Drake vs. Southern Illinois

The spread for this matchup is set at 5 points, with sportsbooks listing Drake as the favorite.

Drake vs. Southern Illinois Moneyline

As for the moneyline, Drake has -212 odds to pick up the win, while Southern Illinois is listed at +176 to claim victory.

Over/Under

Finally, the total for the game is set at 126.5 points.

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Game Time and How to Watch

  • Game Day: Saturday, March 4, 2023
  • Game Time: 6:00 PM ET
  • TV Channel: CBS Sports Network
  • Location: St. Louis, Missouri
  • Arena: Enterprise Center

Drake vs. Southern Illinois Betting Trends

Drake has played 31 games, with 14 wins against the spread. The Bulldogs have won in 22, or 84.6%, of the 26 contests they have been named as odds-on favorites in this year. Drake’s games this year have gone over the point total 48.4% of the time (15 out of 31 games with a set point total).

Southern Illinois has played 31 games, with 12 wins, against the spread. The Salukis have put together a 3-5 record in games they were the underdog on the moneyline (winning 37.5% of those games). Southern Illinois’ games this year have gone over the point total 51.6% of the time (16 out of 31 games with a set point total).

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Drake vs. Southern Illinois Key Players to Watch

Drake

Tucker DeVries puts up 19.2 points and 1.8 assists per contest — both team highs. He is also posting 5.6 rebounds, shooting 45.5% from the floor and 38.7% from beyond the arc with 2.6 made 3-pointers per contest. Roman Penn leads the Bulldogs at 5.4 assists per contest, while also posting 4.6 rebounds and 12.6 points. Garrett Sturtz puts up 9.3 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.2 assists per contest. Defensively, he posts 1 steal and 0.2 blocked shots.
Darnell Brodie leads the Bulldogs at 6.9 rebounds per game, while also putting up 1.1 assists and 8.7 points.

Southern Illinois

Marcus Domask leads the Salukis in scoring (17 points per game), rebounding (5.7) and assists (3.8), making 45.1% from the field and 35.1% from beyond the arc with 1.7 triples per contest. He also produces 1 steal and 0.4 blocked shots. The Salukis receive 13.7 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game from Lance Jones. The Salukis get 7.1 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game from Xavier Johnson. Jawaun Newton gets the Salukis 5.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.1 assists per contest. He also delivers 0.8 steals and 0.2 blocked shots.

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What you need to know about the Drake Bulldogs

Drake has compiled a 10-11-0 ATS record in conference play so far this year. On offense, the Bulldogs are posting 75.6 points per game (91st-ranked in college basketball). They are surrendering 64.7 points per contest at the other end (37th-ranked). Drake is pulling down 33.4 rebounds per game (87th-ranked in college basketball). It is allowing 29.8 rebounds per contest (99th-ranked).

Drake is draining 8 threes per game (109th-ranked in college basketball) this season, while sporting a 36.8% three-point percentage (51st-ranked). With 6.8 threes conceded per game, the Bulldogs rank 126th in college basketball. They are ceding a 30.9% shooting percentage from beyond the arc, which ranks 33rd in college basketball.

The Bulldogs have gone 9-1 in their past 10 games, with a 7-3 record against the spread during that span. In its past 10 games, Drake has gone over the total six times. In its last 10 games, Drake has been putting up 79.5 points per contest, an average that’s slightly higher than the 75.6 it has scored over the course of the 2022-23 season. Drake’s defense has been less stingy as of late, as the team has given up 66.7 points per game during its past 10 compared to the 64.7 points per game its opponents are averaging on the season.

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What you need to know about the Southern Illinois Salukis

A total of 11 Southern Illinois conference games this season have gone over the point total. In 2022-23, the Salukis are 317th in the nation on offense (66.2 points scored per game) and 13th-best on defense (61.3 points conceded). In 2022-23, Southern Illinois is 320th in the country in rebounds (28.8 per game) and 99th in rebounds allowed (29.8).

Beyond the arc, Southern Illinois is 118th in the country in 3-pointers made per game (7.9). It is 256th in 3-point percentage at 32.9%. Defensively, the Salukis are 42nd in the nation in 3-pointers allowed per game at 6.1. They are 115th in 3-point percentage allowed at 32.8%.

The Salukis are 3-6-1 against the spread and 6-4 overall in their last 10 games. Southern Illinois has hit the over in six of its past 10 contests. Southern Illinois is putting up 64 points per game in its previous 10 games, which is 2.2 fewer points than its average for the season (66.2). While the Salukis are allowing 61.3 points per game in 2022-23, they have been worse over their last 10 games, allowing 62.6 points per contest.

Drake vs. Southern Illinois Prediction & Pick

Our pick to win this game is Drake, and we project that Drake will cover the spread (Drake -5). Finally, we see the scoring in this one going over the posted total of 126.5 points.

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How to bet Drake vs. Southern Illinois

You can bet on Drake vs. Southern Illinois at every legal online sportsbook. For more college basketball odds, including moneylines, spreads, over/under totals, check out the latest NCAA lines as well as our guide to the best college basketball betting sites.

And if you wanted to check out how much you could win on a $10 bet if you parlayed today’s Drake vs. Southern Illinois picks, don’t forget to check out our free parlay calculator.

Not sure what a parlay is? Or even how to bet on college basketball? Check out our complete guide to sports betting.

WRITTEN BY

Matt Rooney

Matt comes from Chicago and has lived in the area his whole life. Graduated from and played football at Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington, IL while also serving as the director of student sports broadcasting. He writes for Betsperts as well as appears on several shows across the network.

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