It will be a battle between Missouri Valley opponents when the Southern Illinois Salukis (16-3) welcome the Indiana State Sycamores (10-8) to SIU Arena. The game gets underway at 8:00 pm ET on Wednesday, Jan. 20 and will air on ES3.
The Salukis were victorious over Drake 81-76 on Sunday. Anthony Beane led all scorers on the team with 26 points on 9-for-22 shooting. The Sycamores, meanwhile, are coming off an awful 82-62 loss at the hands of Wichita State on Sunday. Brenton Scott had a team-high 24 points.
Scott has been on a tear over the last five games for the Sycamores, averaging 20.8 points, 5.4 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 1.0 steal, and 3.4 three-pointers.
Southern Illinois, a three-point favorite, will look to capitalize at home against Indiana State. The Over/Under (O/U) for the matchup is set at 146 points. The Salukis enter the game with records of 16-3 Straight Up (SU) and 10-7 Against The Spread (ATS).
On the other side, Indiana State has a SU record of 10-8 and an ATS record of 12-5. Most recently, Indiana State is 7-2 ATS over the last 10 games.
This is the first meeting of the season for Southern Illinois and Indiana State. The last time they played, Indiana State came out on top, moving its SU record against Southern Illinois to 7-3 in their most recent head-to-head meetings. However, Southern Illinois leads the matchup ATS with a record of 6-4. Indiana State held the edge in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers once in the last five game, while Southern Illinois wasn’t able to do so in that span.
Predictions: SU Winner – SIU, ATS Winner – SIU, O/U – Over
Notes
Southern Illinois is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games.
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Southern Illinois’s last 6 games.
Southern Illinois is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games at home.
Southern Illinois is 9-3 SU in its last 12 games at home.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Southern Illinois’s last 5 games at home.
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Southern Illinois’s last 12 games when playing Indiana State.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Southern Illinois’s last 5 games when playing at home against Indiana State.
Southern Illinois scores an average of just 76.9 points per game (ranked 104th). Indiana State ranks 89th in points allowed, giving up 67.3 points per game.
Indiana State lost its last game by a 20-point margin. In games decided by a margin of 18 points or more, Southern Illinois is 4-1. Indiana State is 0-1 in blowouts this season.
The Southern Illinois Salukis have a defensive rating of 97.6 (ranked 82nd), while the Indiana State Sycamores have an offensive rating of 99.1 (ranked 281st).
The Indiana State Sycamores average a field goal percentage of 40.4% this season. The Southern Illinois Salukis have an outstanding 10-3 record in games where opponents have a FG% of 40.4% or greater.
The Southern Illinois Salukis rank higher based on their field goal percentage (38th) than their effective field goal percentage (46th). The Indiana State Sycamores rank higher based on their effective field goal percentage (303rd) than their field goal percentage (316th).
Southern Illinois ranks 257th in offensive rebounds, while Indiana State ranks 81st in defensive rebounds.
Southern Illinois is one of the top teams in forced turnovers, with opponents averaging a TO% of 22.7% (ranked 25th). Indiana State has a losing record of 1-3 SU this season when its TO% reaches 22.7% or greater.
