Illinois vs Kansas | Prediction & Pick

Fighting Illini look to scalp the Jayhawks

It has been a disappointing season for the Illinois, but the team we thought we’d see all year finally showed up Friday night. They will now get a day’s rest before tackling the daunting task of facing the top seeded Kansas Jayhawks in a third round game in the NCAA Tournament on Sunday in Tulsa.

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#9 Illinois (20-13, 9-9 Big Ten) vs. #1 Kansas (33-2, 14-2 Big 12)

Date/Time: Sunday, March 20, 8:40 PM ET
Venue: Bank of Oklahoma Center in Tulsa, OK.
Broadcast: TNT

Money Line: Illinois +320, Kansas -400
Spread: Kansas -8.5
Over/Under: 144

Illinois shot 59.6 percent from the field and got its highest-seeded win ever in the NCAA tournament as they dominated 1990 National Champs UNLV 73-62.

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Mike Davis posted  his sixth double-double of the season with a game-high 22 points and 11 rebounds, as Bruce Weber’s squad beat out former Illini coach Lon Kruger setting up a clash with Weber’s predecessor, Bill Self.

Illinois had lost in the round of 64 in its previous two tournament appearances, after making an inspiring run all the way to the national championship game in 2005.

As for the Jayhawks, they cruised to victory in the second half after struggling through the first half, just like last season, as Marcus and Markieff Morris put combined for 31 points in a 72-53 win over Boston University on Friday night.

The Jayhawks will now hope that history does not repeat in the Round of 32, where Northern Iowa stunned them a season ago after winning the national championship just two years prior, in 2008.

Kansas finished fifth in the country in scoring (82.4 PPG), 19th in rebounding (38.6 RPG), second in assists (17.9 APG), and were the top shooting team in the nation with a field goal percentage of 51.4%.

The Jayhawks attack features the raucous play of the Morris brothers. Marcus finished as the team’s leading scorer at 17.3 points per game, and was second in the Big 12 with a 58.7 percent field goal percentage. The only player in the league better in shooting was his brother Markieff, who made 60.1 percent of his shots from the floor. Markieff also led the conference in rebounds with 8.2 per contest.

Illinois will counter with their trio of terror, Demetri McCamey (14.8 PPG), Davis (12.0 PPG), and Mike Tisdale (10.1 PPG), all who have averaged double figures in scoring for Illinois during the regular season that included wins over North Carolina, Gonzaga, Northern Colorado, and Oakland all teams in this year’s tournament.

Illinois has never beaten a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament, and we expect that trend to continue on Sunday.

The odds makers have the Kansas Jayhawks as a -8.5 point favorite with an over/under of 143.5.

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