The Nebraska Cornhuskers (23-9) battle the No. 14 Illinois Fighting Illini (24-8) Saturday in the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament. Tip-off from Target Center in Minneapolis is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET (CBS). Below, we analyze FanDuel Sportsbook's lines around the'Nebraska vs. Illinois odds, and make our expert'college basketball picks, predictions and bets.
The 3rd-seeded Cornhuskers destroyed the No. 6 seed Indiana Hoosiers 93-64 Friday night in the quarterfinals. They easily covered the spread as 5.5-point favorites, and the Over (146.5) cashed. Junior G Brice Williams and senior G Keisei Tominaga each scored 23 points in the victory. Nebraska as a team hit 14 three-pointers.
This is the 1st time the Cornhuskers have reached the semifinals of the tournament since they entered the conference in 1998.
The Illinois Fighting Illini, the 2nd seed in the tournament, got 2 clutch free throws from senior F Coleman Hawkins to put them in the lead for good with 1:15 remaining in a 77-74 win over Ohio State Friday. They failed to cover as 5-point favorites, and the Over (149.5) hit. First-team All-Big Ten G Terrence Shannon Jr. continued his historic season with another epic performance, finishing with 28 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals.