The Western Illinois Leathernecks will travel to Lantz Arena to take on the Eastern Illinois Panthers in their home opener. The game starts at 8:00 pm ET on Saturday, Nov. 21.
The Panthers fell to Ball State 73-56 the last time they played. A.J. Riley finished with 21 points to lead the game. The Leathernecks, meanwhile, are coming off an 84-57 win over UIC in their last game. Jabari Sandifer played well, recording 16 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists.
Eastern Illinois, a four-point underdog, will look to capitalize at home against Western Illinois. The matchup has an estimated Over/Under (O/U) of 136 points. The Panthers come into this game winless with a 0-2 record Straight Up (SU) and 0-2 Against The Spread (ATS).
Across the court, the Leathernecks are a perfect 3-0 SU and 2-0 ATS so far. Western Illinois is one of the top shooting teams in the country, making .521 of its shots from the floor. The Western Illinois defense as a whole has been firing on all cylinders so far, ranking 43rd in Division I with only 60.3 points allowed per game. The Western Illinois defense has been a problem for competitors, allowing only .318 shooting from the field to its opponents. When it comes to defending the rim, the Leathernecks are one of the best in the nation with an average of 6.7 blocks per game.
These two will be squaring off for the first time this season. In their most recent meeting a season ago, Western Illinois came out on top, bringing the head-to-head record to an even 5-5 SU. The Leathernecks lead the matchup ATS with a record of 3-0.
Predictions: SU Winner – WestIl, ATS Winner – WestIl, O/U – Over
Notes
Eastern Illinois is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games.
Eastern Illinois is 10-4 SU in its last 14 games at home.
Eastern Illinois averages 52.5 points per game, placing the team just 348th in the nation. Western Illinois ranks 43rd in points allowed, giving up 60.3 points per game.
In its last game, Western Illinois won by a margin of 27 points. Eastern Illinois is 0-1 in games decided by a margin of 18 points or more. Western Illinois has a 2-0 record in blowouts.
Ranked 28th, the Western Illinois Leathernecks have an offensive rating of 123.5. The Eastern Illinois Panthers rank 346th with a defensive rating of just 125.2.
The Eastern Illinois Panthers average a field goal percentage of 33.3% this season. The Western Illinois Leathernecks are a perfect 2-0 in games where opponents have a FG% of 33.3% or greater.
Western Illinois ranks 92nd in assists, recording 15.7 per game. Eastern Illinois performs worse at 347th with 6.5 assists per game.
Western Illinois, the 31st-ranked team in blocked shots, registers an average of 6.7 per game. Eastern Illinois does worse, ranked 327th with 1.0.
Eastern Illinois makes 6.0 steals per game. In games where it gives up 6 or more steals, Western Illinois is undefeated at 1-0.
