The Syracuse Orange (3-3) and No. 17 Illinois Fighting Illini (5-1) meet Tuesday in Champaign as part of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. Opening tip at the State Farm Center is at 7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN). Below, we analyze Tipico Sportsbook’s lines around the Syracuse vs. Illinois odds, and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and bets.
Syracuse has lost back-to-back close games. On Saturday, the favored-by-9.5 Orange were downed by Bryant 73-72 after losing 76-69 in overtime to St. John’s the game before. SU shot 39.1% from 3-point range in its first 4 games; it has shot just 22.5% in 2 games since.
The Fighting Illini lost 70-61 to No. 3 Virginia on Nov. 20, but bounced back Friday as a -32.5 favorite in a 92-59 win over Lindenwood. Fast-paced Illinois has scored over 85 points in 4 of 6 games.