Who's Playing

Saint Louis Billikens @ Illinois State Redbirds

Current Records: Saint Louis 6-3, Illinois State 5-4

How To Watch

  • When: Sunday, December 15, 2024 at 5 p.m. ET
  • Where: CEFCU Arena -- Normal, Illinois
  • TV: ESPN Plus
  • Follow: CBS Sports App
  • Online streaming: fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
  • Ticket Cost: $20.27

What to Know

Illinois State will be in front of their home fans on Sunday, but a look at the spread shows they might need that home-court advantage. They will be home for the holidays to greet the Saint Louis Billikens at 5:00 p.m. ET at CEFCU Arena. The Redbirds are strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 79.9 points per game this season.

Last Saturday, Illinois State was able to grind out a solid victory over Pacific, taking the game 72-61.

Chase Walker was the offensive standout of the match as he dropped a double-double on 22 points and 11 rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Jack Daugherty, who went 5 for 7 en route to 15 points.

Saint Louis' season wasn't pretty last year but it's starting to look like struggles are in the rearview. They blew past Chicago State 85-62 on Sunday. The Billikens were heavily favored coming into this matchup, and the results showcase why.

Saint Louis relied on the efforts of Robbie Avila, who scored 19 points along with seven rebounds, and Kalu Anya, who almost dropped a double-double on 14 points and nine rebounds. Avila had some trouble finding his footing against San Fran. last Thursday, so this was a step in the right direction. Another player making a difference was Gibson Jimerson, who had 18 points in addition to seven rebounds.

Saint Louis was working as a unit and finished the game with 19 assists. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Chicago State only posted 11.

Illinois State's win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 5-4. As for Saint Louis, they are on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five games, which provided a nice bump to their 6-3 record this season.

Some high-performance offense is likely on the agenda as both are some of the highest scoring teams in the league. Illinois State hasn't had any problem running up the score this season, having averaged 79.9 points per game. However, it's not like Saint Louis struggles in that department as they've been averaging 78.6. With both teams so easily able to put up points, the only question left is who can run the score up higher.

Illinois State came up short against Saint Louis when the teams last played back in November of 2023, falling 80-71. Will Illinois State have more luck at home instead of on the road?

Odds

Saint Louis is a slight 2-point favorite against Illinois State, according to the latest college basketball odds.

The oddsmakers had a good feel for the line for this one, as the game opened with the Billikens as a 2.5-point favorite.


The over/under is 150.5 points.

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Series History

Saint Louis has won both of the games they've played against Illinois State in the last 3 years.

  • Nov 11, 2023 - Saint Louis 80 vs. Illinois State 71
  • Nov 23, 2021 - Saint Louis 82 vs. Illinois State 76