Southern Illinois v Loyola Chicago
The #21 Loyola Chicago Ramblers will wrap up the regular season with a two-game home series against the Southern Illinois Salukis. They opened as massive 19.5-point favorites for Friday’s opener, and frankly, the Ramblers should thrash off Southern Illinois.
Loyola Chicago is tied with Drake for the top spot in the Missouri Valley Conference, nine games ahead of the Salukis. The Ramblers are No. 10 in the NCAA NET Rankings and No. 9 in the KenPom rankings, posting the best defensive rating in the country (86.6).
On the other side, the Salukis are No. 235 in the NCAA NET Rankings and No. 220 in the KenPom rankings. They rank outside of the top 200 in both defensive and offensive efficiency, scoring just 99.4 points per 100 possessions (238th in the country) and surrendering 104.5 in a return (211th).
#Loyola has moved up one spot to No. 21 in this week’s @AP_Top25 Poll! The #Ramblers have been ranked in each of the last three weeks and close out the 2020-21 regular season with home games vs. Southern Illinois this weekend.
🗞️➡️ https://t.co/ttHqegEKHy#OnwardLU #MVCHoops pic.twitter.com/QOm0Mk9IKT
— Loyola Men’s Basketball (@RamblersMBB) February 22, 2021
The Ramblers have covered just once in their last five outings, but they are 11-5-1 ATS over the previous 17. Also, the Ramblers are 10-4 ATS in the last 14 showings at home as double-digit favorites.
They possess great depth with seven guys averaging seven or more points per contest, while senior center Cameron Krutwig leads the way with 15.0 points, 6.6 boards, and 3.0 dimes a night.
Southern Illinois is 0-5 ATS in its last five games as a double-digit underdog. The Salukis have won two of their last six games overall, covering twice in the process.
They’ve won two of their last three matchups with the Ramblers, but the Salukis are 0-3 SU and ATS over their previous three road contests against Loyola Chicago.
College Basketball Pick – Loyola Chicago by 20.
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