DePaul vs Northern Illinois Prediction 11-23-24 College Basketball Picks
Northern Illinois (2-3) vs. DePaul (5-0)
November 23, 2024 5:00 pm EDT
The Line: DePaul -15.5; Over/Under: +143
(Get latest betting odds)
The Northern Illinois Huskies and the DePaul Blue Demons meet Saturday in college basketball action from Wintrust Arena. Here’s a DePaul vs NIU prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best DePaul vs NIU pick.
NIU Huskies Betting Preview
The Huskies kicked off the 2024-25 season with a 2-2 run. First came an 80-65 loss to Georgia Southern, then a dominant blowout win over Holy Cross 105-37. The next pair were a win over Monmouth 79-66 and a loss to Bradley 76-60.
Northern Illinois took another loss on Wednesday versus Elon, and it was a bad one. After a 38-29 deficit in the first half, NIU scored just 19 points from there in a 75-48 defeat. James Dent was the only team player in double-figures with 16 points.
DePaul Blue Demons Betting Preview
Over on the DePaul side, they’re unblemished through five games. The Blue Demons eked past Southern Indiana 80-78 in their first outing, then took out Prairie View 92-59. Game three was a 95-64 blowout over Mercer, then came an 84-58 win versus Duquesne.
DePaul played a reasonably close game versus Eastern Illinois in their last outing but still came out okay. The Demons scored 29 in the first half and 49 in the second for a 78-69 win. Jacob Meyer led the way on his 16 points and five rebounds.
Why the DePaul Blue Demons will win
- DePaul has won each of its last six games against non-Conference opponents.
- Northern Illinois has lost each of its last six road games against non-Conference opponents.
- Northern Illinois has lost the first half in each of its last six day games against non-AP-ranked opponents.
Why the Northern Illinois Huskies will win
- DePaul has lost 12 of its last 13 games when playing with a rest advantage.
- DePaul has lost the first half in each of its last four day games against non-AP-ranked opponents.
DePaul vs NIU Prediction
I’ll probably just stick with DePaul. The Blue Demons had a pretty slow first half in their last outing versus Eastern Illinois and eventually coughed up 17 turnovers in the nine-point victory. DePaul shot pretty well in that one though, and they’ve now scored at least 78 points in every game so far.
As for NIU, they put up a pretty horrendous second half against Elon on Wednesday. The Huskies have scored a combined 108 points in their last two games, giving up 151 on the other side. DePaul should have plenty of opportunities to put up points in this one.
