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Oakland Golden Grizzlies @ Illinois Fighting Illini

Current Records: Oakland 1-1, Illinois 2-0

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The Illinois Fighting Illini will face off against the Oakland Golden Grizzlies at 9:00 p.m. ET on Wednesday at State Farm Center. The Fighting Illini will be strutting in after a victory while the Golden Grizzlies will be stumbling in from a loss.

Illinois is headed into the game following a big win against SIUE on Friday, something the oddsmakers some coming from a mile away. Illinois took their match with ease, bagging a 90-58 victory over SIUE. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Fighting Illini.

Illinois' win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Kasparas Jakucionis, who dropped a double-double on 12 points and 13 assists. The team also got some help courtesy of Tomislav Ivisic, who went 6 for 9 en route to 18 points plus seven rebounds and two blocks.

Illinois was working as a unit and finished the game with 21 assists. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as SIUE only posted 11.

Meanwhile, Oakland was expected to have a tough go of it on Wednesday, and, well, they did. It's going to take some time for them to recover from the 87-43 bruising that Boise State dished out on Wednesday. The Golden Grizzlies were in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 48-18.

Illinois' win bumped their record up to 2-0. As for Oakland, their defeat ended a three-game streak of away wins dating back to last season and brought them to 1-1.

Illinois beat Oakland 64-53 in their previous meeting back in November of 2023. Does Illinois have another victory up their sleeve, or will Oakland turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.

Odds

Illinois is a big 23.5-point favorite against Oakland, according to the latest college basketball odds.

The line has drifted a bit towards the Fighting Illini, as the game opened with the Fighting Illini as a 21.5-point favorite.


The over/under is 151.5 points.

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Series History

Illinois won the only game these two teams have played in the last year.

  • Nov 10, 2023 - Illinois 64 vs. Oakland 53