Big Ten Conference Championship, Preview & Best Bets: March 17th, 2024
Written by: Nate Hornung
Last Update: Sun Mar 17, 2024, 12:46 pm ET
Read Time: 3 minutes
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The Big Ten Conference Championship is here! The 5 seeded Wisconsin Badgers have won three straight games to reach the Championship, including knocking off #1 seed, the Purdue Boilermakers. The 2 seed Illini of Illinois have found their way in the championship game as well!
Will Brad Underwood and Terrance Shannon Jr claim the automatic qualifier? Or will the Badgers have something to say about it?
Let's get into this game and find our best bets!
Big Ten Conference Championship Information
Wisconsin vs Illinois Matchup Information
- Venue & Location: Target Center (Minneapolis, MN)
- Date: Sunday, March 17th, 2024
- Tip Off: 3:30pm Eastern
- Broadcast: CBS
Big Ten Conference Championship Betting Odds
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Spread
- Wisconsin +3 (-110)
- Illinois -3 (-110)
Moneyline
- Wisconsin +135
- Illinois -160
Total
- Over 148.5 (-110)
- Under 148.5 (-110)
Big Ten Conference Championship Best Bets
These teams played in the beginning of March for the first time all season. Illinois won that game in Madison, 91-83. While Wisconsin started Big Ten play 8-1, the ended just 3-8 to pull the 5 seed in this conference tournament.
Now they have been on a bit of a run, winning three straight and knocking off Purdue, and I like the magic to keep the Badgers rolling.
Both offenses are ranked in the Top 15 of overall efficiency, but the Illini's defense falls out of the Top 100 and they fail to force very many turnovers, ranking 359th in TO Rate Defensively. The Badgers still have a Top 45 ranked defense, and they are one of the best teams at taking care of the ball and limiting offensive rebounds.
Wisconsin plays a much slower paced game, and forcing Illinois to play long stretches of defense could hinder their offensive explosiveness.
In their game earlier this month, Illinois shot over 56% from deep as a team, and shot 7 more free throws than the Badgers.
I think the chips fall differently today, and I like the Badgers to keep this game close and even win it outright.
The Pick: Wisconsin +3 (-110) Bovada
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Nate has been a recreational sports bettor for about 5 years. In that time, he has grown to love the pursuit of winners and sticking it to The Man. Nate loves data and uses his understanding of numbers to help him be a more profitable sports gambler, however he will be the first to tell you this game is about more than just stats.
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