No. 21 Creighton Blue Jays at Illinois State Redbirds
Friday, 1/13/12, 9:00 PM EST, TV: ESPN3
Opening Point Spread: Creighton -2.5
Current Betting Line: Creighton -2.5
Opening Total: 143
Current Total: 141.5
Odds Courtesy of Bookmaker
Creighton searches for its fourth straight road win in visiting Illinois State inside Redbird Arena and will look to extend its overall win streak to five games in the process. The Blue Jays have won 18 of the past 28 meetings, but are just 7-24 all-time in Normal, IL. The program won and covered the last two meetings, including a 64-53 victory on tonight’s court as one-point underdogs on Dec. 29, 2010. Creighton is 26-19 ATS as a favorite the last two-plus seasons, while the ‘over’ is 24-18 in that situation.
The Blue Jays are led offensively by sophomore forward Doug McDermott, who is averaging 24.5 points and 8.3 rebounds per game, as he ranks second nationally in scoring average. Creighton was picked to win the Missouri Valley Conference during the preseason, returning 10 lettermen and three starters from last year’s 23-16 squad. The program will likely walk away with a victory tonight, considering its opponent has lost 21 straight games versus ranked foes, including an 0-5 all-time mark in such games inside Redbird Arena.
Illinois State is coming off a hard fought 65-62 defeat to the Wichita State Shockers as 14-point road underdogs, while going ‘under’ the total for the first time since Dec. 3. The Redbirds are shooting just 44.4 percent from the field this season, but their defense limits opponents to 40.1 percent. Hitting the 60-point mark is important for this team, tallying an 11-2 record when doing so, while going 0-3 when falling short of that number. Illinois State is 4-1 ATS as an underdog this season.
The Redbirds will look to get the ball into forward Jackie Carmichael’s hands, as he leads the team in averaging 12.9 points and 8.3 rebounds per game. He will certainly get some help from junior guard Tyler Brown, who has scored in double figures in four straight games, as the team looks to bounce back from defeat. “Losing never feels good, but you hope when you put forth a tremendous effort as we did, you hope that positive things come from it,” commented Redbirds head coach Tim Jankovich.
Bettors will likely back the Blue Jays due to their 12-4 ATS mark as a favorite, while the Redbirds are 6-15 ATS in their last 21 home games.
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