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The No. 3 seed Illinois Fighting Illini (27-8, 15-5 Big Ten) will play the No. 9 seed Iowa Hawkeyes (24-12, 10-10 Big Ten) in the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight on Saturday at Toyota Center, airing on TBS beginning at 6:09 p.m. ET.
Saturday's matchup between the Fighting Illini and the Hawkeyes features the Fighting Illini as strong 7-point favorites. A 138.5-point over/under has been set for the game.
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Illinois vs. Iowa Odds and Game Info
- Game day: Saturday, March 28, 2026
- Game time: 6:09 p.m. ET
- TV channel: TBS
- Location: Houston, Texas
- Arena: Toyota Center
- Live stream: Watch this match on HBO Max (Regional restrictions may apply)
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Illinois vs. Iowa Odds and Prediction
- Spread favorite: Illinois (-7)
- Moneyline: Illinois (-351), Iowa (+270)
- Total: 138.5 points
Pick ATS:Illinois (-7)
- Pick OU: Over (138.5)
- Prediction: Illinois 77, Iowa 70
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Illinois vs. Iowa Comparison
| Illinois Rank | Illinois Stat | Iowa Stat | Iowa Rank | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21st | 84.2 | Points Scored | 75.0 | 200th |
| 56th | 69.0 | Points Allowed | 66.1 | 16th |
| 118th | 14.7 | Assists | 15.1 | 102nd |
| 7th | 8.5 | Turnovers | 8.8 | 14th |
| 102nd | 46.4% | Field Goal % | 49.0% | 20th |
| 24th | 40.7% | Field Goal % Allowed | 45.9% | 269th |
Illinois Key Players
- Keaton Wagler leads the Fighting Illini in points and assists per game, scoring 17.7 points and distributing 4.3 assists.
- Illinois' best rebounder is David Mirkovic, who averages 8.0 boards per game in addition to a PPG average of 13.7.
- The Fighting Illini get the most three-point shooting production out of Wagler, who knocks down 2.4 threes per game.
- Wagler and Zvonimir Ivisic lead Illinois on the defensive end, with Wagler leading the team in steals averaging 0.9 per game and Ivisic in blocks averaging 2.0 per contest.
Iowa Key Players
- The Hawkeyes' Bennett Stirtz puts up enough points (19.7 per game) and assists (4.4 per game) to sit atop the squad's leaderboards.
- Tavion Banks' stat line of 4.7 rebounds, 10.4 points and 1.1 assists per game secures the top spot on the Iowa rebounding leaderboard.
- Stirtz hits 2.4 three-pointers per game, the most on the Hawkeyes.
- Stirtz (1.4 steals per game) is the steal leader for Iowa while Cam Manyawu (0.6 blocks per game) is the block leader.
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