loading...
League Logo
CBB
League Logo
CBB
League Logo
NBA
League Logo
NHL
League Logo
MLB
All
    loading...

    Illinois vs. Michigan college basketball odds, spread: Illini star Ayo Dosunmu questionable for Top 5 Big Ten showdown; Wolverines can clinch regular-season title

    The game of the night in college basketball is No. 4 Illinois at No. 2 Michigan, which can clinch the Big Ten regular-season title with a victory.
    Hero Image

    The University of Michigan, now up to No. 2 in the country, can win its first Big Ten regular-season title since 2014 with a victory over No. 4 Illinois in the marquee game of Tuesday in college basketball. U-M is a fairly sizable 7.5-point home favorite on the college basketball odds at William Hill Sportsbook because the Illini might be without All-American candidate and potential Big Ten Player of the Year Ayo Dosunmu due to injury for a third straight game. Check out the SportsLine Projection Model's simulation of this showdown.

    Dosunmu, a junior guard who is a Bob Cousy Award Finalist, is averaging 21.0 points (second in Big Ten), 6.3 rebounds, and 5.3 assists per game (first in Big Ten) – should he finish with those numbers, he would become the only player in Division I over the last 11 seasons to average at least 20 points, six rebounds and five assists.

    No Big Ten player has hit those seasonal averages since Ohio State's Evan Turner in 2009-10 when he was named National Player of the Year. Dosunmu has two triple-doubles this season, joining Michigan State legend Magic Johnson as the only players in Big Ten history with multiple triple-doubles in league play.

    Alas, Dosunmu suffered a facial injury – reportedly a broken nose – on Feb. 23 at Michigan State and has missed the past two, with Illinois (18-6, 14-4 Big Ten) beating Nebraska and Wisconsin. The team is calling Dosunmu day-to-day, but Coach Brad Underwood has essentially said that getting him healthy for the NCAA Tournament is priority No. 1. Dosunmu might play Tuesday, though, and did go through a shootaround this morning. Illinois is +2000 at William Hill Sportsbook to win it all.

    Michigan (18-1, 13-1 Big Ten) is now a +400 third favorite at William Hill for the national title behind Gonzaga (+280) and Baylor (+325), although the Wolverines replaced the Bears at No. 2 in the AP Top 25 on Monday. U-M is all but a lock for a top seed in the NCAA Tournament. Its only loss was 75-57 at then-No. 23 Minnesota on Jan. 16 and it has a magic number of one for the Big Ten regular-season crown.

    Bettors at William Hill are absolutely crushing Michigan to win the national championship. In the site's latest update on NCAA Tournament futures, the Wolverines – once priced as high as +12500 – are taking 17 percent of all money wagered to win it all, tied with Gonzaga for the most. On number of tickets sold, Michigan is second at seven percent behind the Zags (eight percent).  

    A William Hill bettor in Illinois wagered $30,000 on Michigan +800, then followed that up a few days later with another $30,000 at +550. If the Wolverines were to capture their first title since 1989, that bettor would receive a total payout of $465,000.

    "Michigan is absolutely on that same tier as Gonzaga and Baylor," said Nick Bogdanovich, Director of Trading for William Hill US. "They've been playing outstanding. We've got huge liability on Michigan, they were pounding them early. So we lose really bad with Michigan, we lose pretty damn good with Baylor too. Gonzaga is good for us though. Actually, Michigan would be the worst result for us out of any team."

    This is the only scheduled meeting of the season between Michigan and Illinois. The Wolverines have won nine of the last 11 meetings in Ann Arbor. The schools haven't met with both ranked since March 2, 1997, at Illinois. The favorite is 4-1-1 against the spread in the past six meetings. 

    SportsLine's proven model simulates every college basketball game 10,000 times. It absolutely crushed its March Madness picks in the last tournament, beating nearly 90 percent of all CBS Sports brackets one year after finishing in the top five percent. Join SportsLine now to get winning college basketball picks.

    SportsLine Staff

    Share This Story