Who's Playing

Missouri State @ Illinois State

Current Records: Missouri State 8-8; Illinois State 7-10

What to Know

The Illinois State Redbirds and the Missouri State Bears are even-steven against one another since December of 2015 (7-7), but not for long. Illinois State and the Bears will face off in a Missouri Valley battle at 8 p.m. ET Wednesday at Redbird Arena. The teams split their matchups last year, with Illinois State winning the first 79-74 at home and MSU taking the second 88-63.

Illinois State beat the Evansville Aces 69-61 this past Saturday. The top scorer for Illinois State was guard Malachi Poindexter (18 points). Poindexter hadn't helped his team much against the Indiana State Sycamores last Wednesday, so this was a nice turnaround for him.

Meanwhile, the matchup between the Bears and the Belmont Bruins this past Saturday was not a total blowout, but with MSU falling 74-61 on the road, it was darn close to turning into one. Guard Donovan Clay put forth a good effort for the losing side as he had 20 points along with eight boards.

The Redbirds are expected to lose this next one by 3.5. Those betting on them against the spread shouldn't have high expectations for them since the team is 2-5 ATS when expected to lose.

Illinois State is now 7-10 while MSU sits at 8-8. A pair of numbers to keep in mind before tip-off: Illinois State is 37th worst in college basketball in points per game, with only 66.4 on average. MSU's defense has more to brag about, as they they come into the contest boasting the 32nd fewest points allowed per game in college basketball at 62.1. So the cards are definitely stacked in their favor.

How To Watch

  • When: Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET
  • Where: Redbird Arena -- Normal, Illinois
  • Follow: CBS Sports App
  • Ticket Cost: $16.50

Odds

The Bears are a 3.5-point favorite against the Redbirds, 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 Bears as a 2.5-point favorite.

Over/Under: -111

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Series History

Illinois State and Missouri State both have seven wins in their last 14 games.

  • Jan 19, 2022 - Missouri State 88 vs. Illinois State 63
  • Dec 01, 2021 - Illinois State 79 vs. Missouri State 74
  • Feb 07, 2021 - Missouri State 72 vs. Illinois State 62
  • Feb 06, 2021 - Missouri State 74 vs. Illinois State 67
  • Feb 05, 2020 - Missouri State 80 vs. Illinois State 60
  • Jan 07, 2020 - Missouri State 67 vs. Illinois State 63
  • Feb 27, 2019 - Illinois State 65 vs. Missouri State 57
  • Feb 10, 2019 - Missouri State 66 vs. Illinois State 65
  • Jan 30, 2018 - Illinois State 76 vs. Missouri State 60
  • Jan 07, 2018 - Illinois State 72 vs. Missouri State 68
  • Feb 15, 2017 - Illinois State 67 vs. Missouri State 66
  • Jan 04, 2017 - Illinois State 74 vs. Missouri State 71
  • Jan 30, 2016 - Missouri State 84 vs. Illinois State 81
  • Dec 30, 2015 - Illinois State 74 vs. Missouri State 61