Halftime Report
Only one more half stands between Illinois State and the win they were favored to collect coming into this afternoon. They have jumped out to a quick 44-36 lead against Evansville.
Illinois State came into the match with some extra motivation after the loss they were dealt the last time these two teams faced off. We’ll see if they’re able to flip the script or if it’ll just be more of the same.
Who’s Playing
Evansville Aces @ Illinois State Redbirds
Current Records: Evansville 15-11, Illinois State 12-14
How To Watch
What to Know
We’ve got another exciting Missouri Valley matchup on schedule as the Evansville Aces and the Illinois State Redbirds are set to tip at 3:00 p.m. ET on February 18th at CEFCU Arena. Evansville has insisted on making their lastfour contests complete nail-biters, turning in a record of 2-2 during that stretch of close contests.
While it was all tied up 37-37 at halftime, Evansville was not quite the Bulldogs’ equal in the second half on Tuesday. The Aces lost 78-75 to the Bulldogs on a last-minute jump shot From Atin Wright. That’s two games in a row now that Evansville has lost by exactly three points.
Evansville’s loss came about despite a quality game from Ben Humrichous, who scored 18 points along with six rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Joshua Hughes, who scored 11 points along with two steals and two blocks.
Meanwhile, Illinois State made the experts look like fools on Tuesday, as the team pulled off a huge upset of the Sycamores. They walked away with an 80-67 victory over the Sycamores. The win was some much needed relief for Illinois State as it spelled an end to their three-game losing streak.
Myles Foster and Johnny Kinziger were among the main playmakers for Illinois State as the former dropped a double-double on 19 points and 12 rebounds and the latter scored 31 points. It was the first time this season that Kinziger scored 20 or more points. Less helpful for Illinois State was Dalton Banks’ abysmal 0-7 three-point shooting.
The Aces’ defeat ended a four-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 15-11. As for the Redbirds, their win bumped their record up to 12-14.
While only Illinois State took care of their fans the last time they played, both teams pleased bettors by covering the spread. Looking ahead to Sunday, Illinois State is the favorite in this one, as the experts expect to see them win by 4.5 points. Evansville might be worth a quick bet since they’ve covered the spread the last seven times they’ve played.
Evansville didn’t have too much breathing room in their game against the Redbirds in their previous meeting back in January, but they still walked away with a 58-54 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for Evansville since the team won’t have the home-court advantage this time around. We’ll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Odds
Illinois State is a 4.5-point favorite against Evansville, according to the latest college basketball odds.
The oddsmakers were right in line with the betting community on this one, as the game opened as a 4.5-point spread, and stayed right there.
The over/under is 135 points.
See college basketball picks for every single game, including this one, from SportsLine’s advanced computer model. Get picks now.
Series History
Illinois State has won 7 out of their last 10 games against Evansville.
- Jan 27, 2024 – Evansville 58 vs. Illinois State 54
- Feb 26, 2023 – Illinois State 72 vs. Evansville 53
- Jan 07, 2023 – Illinois State 69 vs. Evansville 61
- Jan 23, 2022 – Evansville 56 vs. Illinois State 53
- Jan 21, 2022 – Illinois State 94 vs. Evansville 56
- Jan 10, 2021 – Illinois State 73 vs. Evansville 68
- Jan 09, 2021 – Evansville 57 vs. Illinois State 48
- Feb 29, 2020 – Illinois State 71 vs. Evansville 60
- Jan 29, 2020 – Illinois State 77 vs. Evansville 66
- Mar 07, 2019 – Illinois State 65 vs. Evansville 60
