Half-time report
There’s only one half left between Drake and the victory they were favored to get tonight. They jumped out to an early 34-30 lead against Illinois State.
If Drake continues to play like this, they will increase their record to 15-2 in no time. On the other hand, Illinois State will have to settle for a 10-8 record unless they turn things around (and quickly).
Who’s playing
Illinois State Redbirds @ Drake Bulldogs
Current records: Illinois State 10-7, Drake 14-2
How to watch
What you need to know
Drake is 9-1 against Illinois State since January 2020, and they will have a chance to extend that success on Wednesday. The two will face off in a Missouri Valley battle at 9 p.m. ET at the Knapp Center. The Bulldogs will strut after a win while the Redbirds will stumble after a loss.
Drake is heading into this one after bettors pegged last week’s low/under at 120, but even that proved too high. They beat Evansville 63-40 on Saturday. The Bulldogs were heavily favored in this matchup, and the results show why.
Bennett Stirtz was the offensive star of the game going 7 of 11 en route to 16 points plus seven rebounds and six assists. He struggled to find his footing against Bradley on Wednesday, so this was a nice turnaround.
Drake broke the offensive glass and finished the game with 19 offensive rebounds. Those were the most offensive rebounds they’ve pulled off all season.
Meanwhile, Illinois State pushed its score up to 84 on Saturday, but even that wasn’t enough to win. They lost 85-84 to N. Iowa on a last-minute layup by Tytan Anderson. The Redbirds jumped out to an early lead (up 12 with 5:55 left in the first quarter), but unfortunately, they were unable to maintain that momentum.
Despite their loss, Illinois State saw several players rise to the challenge and make remarkable plays. Chase Walker, who nearly escaped a double-double with 27 points and nine rebounds, was perhaps the best of all. Additionally, Walker also racked up six offensive rebounds, his most since November 2024. Another player who made the difference was Johnny Kinziger, who had 19 points.
The win makes it the second in a row for Drake and brings his season record to 14-2. As for Illinois State, this is the second straight loss for them and drops their season record to 10-7.
Wednesday’s contest promises to be a masterclass in shooting: Drake has been incredibly accurate this season, making 48.2 percent of his field goals per game. However, it’s not like Illinois State is struggling in that department as they’ve made 48.8 percent of their field goals this season. Given these competing forces, it will be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Everything went Drake’s way against Illinois State in the teams’ last game in January 2024, as Drake escaped with a 77-56 victory. Will Drake repeat his success, or does Illinois State have a better game plan this time around? We’ll know soon enough.
Odds
Drake is a 9.5-point favorite against Illinois State, according to the latest college basketball odds.
The punters were perfectly in tune with the betting community on this point, as the game opened with a 9.5 point spread and stayed there.
The over/under is 124.5 points.
See college basketball picks for every game, including this one, from SportsLine’s advanced computer model. Get Picks Now.
History of the series
Drake has won 9 of its last 10 games against Illinois State.
- January 17, 2024 – Drake 77 vs. Illinois State 56
- January 2, 2024 – Drake 88 vs. Illinois State 71
- February 22, 2023 – Drake 82 vs. Illinois State 51
- January 26, 2022 – Drake 89 vs. Illinois State 88
- January 12, 2022 – Drake 86 vs. Illinois State 75
- February 1, 2021 – Drake 95 vs. Illinois State 60
- January 31, 2021 – Drake 78 vs. Illinois State 76
- March 05, 2020 – Drake 75 vs. Illinois State 65
- February 22, 2020 – Illinois State 57 vs. Drake 53
- January 16, 2020 – Drake 84 vs. Illinois State 74
