Illinois State vs Missouri State 12/1/21 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

The Missouri State Bears and the Illinois State Redbirds meet Wednesday in college basketball action from Redbird Arena. Missouri State is 1-1 in their last two games and coming off a win over George Washington. As for the Redbirds, they’re 3-4 on the year and beat Purdue Northwest in their last outing. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place. 

Missouri State lost to Southeast Missouri State in their last game but bounced back with wins over Alabama State, Sam Houston and LBSU in the next three. After a loss to East Tennessee State the Bears beat George Washington in their last game. 

In the George Washington matchup, the Bears rode a 32-19 first half and a 40-35 second half toward a 72-54 win. Gaige Prim topped the team with 20 points and nine rebounds, while Jaylen Minnett added 16 points. 

Over on the Illinois State side, they went 2-2 over their first four games with wins over UNCW and Bucknell around losses to Eastern Michigan and Murray State. The Rebirds then lost to Saint Louis and Buffalo before beating Purdue Northwest. 

In the Purdue Northwest game, the Redbirds got off to something of a slow start but eventually pounded out the 81-71 win. Antonio Reeves led the way on 20 points with four rebounds. Sy Chatman doubled up on 14 points with 12 boards. 

The Redbirds are 1-8-1 ATS in their last 10 home games and 1-3-1 ATS in their last five Wednesday games. Illinois State is 1-4 ATS in their last five overall. 

Meanwhile, the Bears are 20-6-3 ATS in their last 29 road games and 33-16-2 ATS in their last 51 overall. Missouri State is 4-0 in their last four Wednesday games. 

PICK: I’m probably going to stick with Missouri State here. The Bears have scored pretty well this year, notching 72 or more points in every game so far. In their two losses, Missouri State has given up a combined 176 points, though. 

As for the Redbirds, they had a nice game against an overmatched Purdue Northwest, shooting 47.1 percent from the field and hauling in 52 rebounds. Illinois State will have a much stouter matchup here though, and if Missouri State plays well they should cover.