Illinois vs Texas Prediction, Odds & Best Bet for Dec. 6 (Don't Expect Fireworks at Madison Square Garden)

Illinois vs Texas Game Info

2022-23 NCAA College Basketball Regular Season Game
No. 17 Illinois Fighting Illini (6-2) vs. No. 2 Texas Longhorns (6-0)
Date: Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2022
Time: 7 p.m. ET
Venue: Madison Square Garden — New York, NY
Coverage: ESPN

The 2022-23 NCAA college basketball season continues on Tuesday, Dec. 6, including a Jimmy V Classic matchup between the No. 17 Illinois Fighting Illini and No. 2 Texas Longhorns.

Illinois could use a win here after Friday's 71-66 loss to then-No. 22 Maryland ended the former's two-game winning streak. Meanwhile, Texas kept its perfect season going on Thursday, walking out with the 72-67 victory over ranked Creighton with help from Marcus Carr's team-high 19 points.

Can Illinois get back on track with the upset win tonight? Or will Texas prove to be too tough of a challenge for the Fighting Illini?

Illinois vs Texas Odds & Spread

All NCAA college basketball betting lines, odds and prop bets.
Moneyline: ILL: (+116) | TEX: (-142)
Spread: ILL: +2.5 (-110) | TEX: -2.5 (-110)
Total: 141.5 - Over: (-110) | Under: (-110)

Texas enters this contest as the slight favorite on the moneyline and spread per FanDuel Sportsbook's odds. This 7 p.m. ET clash also features an over/under of 141.5 points, which is about average compared to Tuesday's projected totals.

Illinois vs Texas Prediction & Pick

One of the reasons why Illinois fell to Maryland was due to the Terrapins shooting 9-of-23 (39.1%) from three-point range. The good news for the Fighting Illini is that the Longhorns shouldn't pose much of a threat from the perimeter, averaging 6.8 threes (No. 213) on a 28.9% success rate (T-No. 314).

The bad news for Illinois is that Texas doesn't need a three-point game to create separation. Instead, the Longhorns' defense does that for them, holding opponents to 55.2 PPG (No. 6) on a 36.2% field-goal percentage (No. 8).

Texas' strong defensive play has led to it owning the second-best scoring margin in the nation (plus-25.3). Though Illinois' plus-20.4 differential ranks seventh-best, that average drops to minus-1.7 whenever the team is away from home.

Taking advantage of Illinois' loss to Maryland, look for Texas to lock down the Terrapins' offense en route to victory.

Final Score Prediction: Texas: 72 | Illinois: 67

Illinois vs Texas Betting Trends

- Illinois is 0-5 against the spread (ATS) in its last five games against the Big 12.
- Texas is 4-9 straight up in its last 13 games against the Big Ten.
- The total has hit the under in nine of Illinois' last 13 games.
- The total has hit the under in each of Texas' last six games played in December.

Illinois vs Texas Best Bet

For the best bet, I recommend backing the total going under 141.5 points. First of all, Illinois and Texas own the 27th- and sixth-best scoring defense in the league, respectively. On top of that, the total has gone over in 69% of the Fighting Illini's last 13 games, as well as in the Longhorns' lone neutral-site game thus far.

With defesne being at the forefront of this battle, expect a lower-than-expected final score tonight.

Bet: Under 141.5 Points (-110)

Devon Platana is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Devon Platana also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username PepeSilvia0. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.