Valparaiso vs Southern Illinois 1/8/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds
Southern Illinois Salukis (8-5) vs. Valparaiso Beacons (8-7)
January 8, 2022 7:00 pm EDT
The Line: Valparaiso Beacons +1 ; Over/Under: 127
(Get latest betting odds)
The Southern Illinois Salukis and the Valparaiso Beacons meet Saturday in college basketball action from Athletics-Recreation Center. Southern Illinois is 8-5 on the year so far. The Salukis beat Grambling in their last game. As for Valparaiso, they’re 8-7 so far and coming off a loss to Northern Iowa. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.
Southern Illinois got off to a spotty 2-3 start this year with losses to Little Rock, Northeastern and Creighton. Since then it’s been a 6-2 run for the Salukis with wins over Alcorn State, Evansville, Southern Miss, SEMO, Maryville and Grambling.
Matched up against Grambling on December 28, the Salukis held a 41-25 lead at halftime and eventually took the victory 75-64. Leading the way was Marcus Domask with 24 points, seven rebounds and three assists.
Over on the Valparaiso side, they came out of the gate at 5-5 with victories over Jacksonville State, Tulane, Trinity Christian, Western Michigan and East-West University. Since then it’s been a 3-2 run with losses to Charlotte and Northern Iowa.
In the Wednesday game versus Northern Iowa, the Beacons scored just 22 points in the first half. Valparaiso got better from there but still lost 92-65 in a blowout. Kevion Taylor topped the team on his 17 points and two assists.
The Beacons are 1-4 ATS in their last five versus a team with a winning straight-up record and the over is 4-1 in their last five overall. The under is 20-8 in Valparaiso’s last 28 as an underdog.
Meanwhile, the Salukis are 2-6-1 ATS in their last nine Saturday games and 2-5 ATS in the last seven overall. The under is 4-1 in Southern IL’s last five road games.
PICK: I’m going to try Valparaiso here. The Beacons really need a bounce-back game after a rough outing versus Northern Iowa, however. Valparaiso scored just 65 points there, but the good news is that they had hit 81 or more in their two previous outings. It’s been a little while since we’ve seen the Salukis on the court, so I’m more comfortable with the Beacons on a cover/win.
