Check out our free Missouri State vs Southern Illinois pick and preview for this NCAA Basketball game in Carbondale. See who we like to win and cover the spread in this College Basketball matchup.

Missouri State vs Southern Illinois Pick & Preview: Sunday, February 5th Betting Odds

Bears vs Salukis Matchup at a Glance

  • Sport: NCAAB
  • Teams: Missouri State Bears at Southern Illinois Salukis
  • Where: Carbondale at Banterra Center
  • Date: Sunday, February 5th
  • Betting Odds: Missouri State +5, MSRST +181 | SILL -226 O/U 122.5

Bears Preview:

Missouri State will take the floor against the Salukis with an overall record of 12-11. So far, the Bears have played 11 games on the road, with a record of 4-7. For the season, Missouri State has been the underdog in 8 games, sitting with a mark of 3-5. Currently, the oddsmakers have the lines set with the Bears being +5 point underdogs.

Missouri State will be counting on another strong performance from the team’s leading scorer Chance Moore who is averaging 11.14 points per game for the Bears. Moore is also important to the team’s ability to score on the perimeter. So far, he leads the team in 3-point shots made. Also key to the Bears’ offensive game plan is the play of Donovan Clay who has hit 47.2% of his field goal attempts on his way to averaging 10.82 points per game.

So far this season, Missouri State has put together a strong scoring offense at 77.5 points per game (46th). This strong figure has come despite the Bears playing at a slow tempo compared to other schools. For the season, they have hit 37.4% of their shots from outside, which is closer to the NCAA average. Missouri State’s overall field goal percentage currently sits at 48.4%

Salukis Preview:

Through 24 games, the Southern Illinois Salukis have an overall record of 17-7. Currently, the Salukis have been the home team 12 times, sitting with a record of 11-1. The Salukis’ are sitting with a betting line that is -5 points in their favor. For the season, Southern Illinois has been favored to win in 16 games, sitting with a mark of 12-4.

Marcus Domask comes into today’s game as the Salukis’ leading scorer at 17.04 points per contest. Not only has Domask been key to the team’s scoring efforts, but he is Southern Illinois’ top rebounder at 5.96 boards per contest. Behind Domask, the team has benefited from the strong play of Lance Jones, who is second on the team in scoring at 14.08 points per game. Overall, he has hit 37.4% of his shots and is adding 3.17 boards per game.

Offensive production has been hard to come by for Southern Illinois this season, as they are currently ranked 402nd in college basketball at 64.0 points per game. A major reason for low scoring totals is the fact that they have played at a below average pace, and have struggled to knock down outside shots. As a team, the Salukis’ 3-point shooting percentage sits at just 35.4%, placing them 158th in the NCAA.

Free Spread Prediction: Missouri State Bears +5

Heading into this matchup between the Southern Illinois Salukis and Missouri State Bears we have a strong lean on taking the points with Missouri State at +5. Both team’s are going to come into this game looking to get up looks from outside, as they are both average team’s in terms of 3-pointers made per game. Look for Missouri State to benefit from facing another squad looking to turn this into a 3-point shooting contest. When looking at the line, we see tremendous value in taking the Missouri State Bears at +5. Go ahead and lock this bet in before tip-off.