Who's Playing

North Dakota @ Western Illinois

Current Records: North Dakota 6-20; Western Illinois 14-11

What to Know

The North Dakota Fighting Hawks and the Western Illinois Leathernecks will face off in a Summit clash at 3 p.m. ET Feb. 12 at Western Hall. The Fighting Hawks will be strutting in after a victory while WIU will be stumbling in from a defeat.

After constant struggles on the road, North Dakota has finally found some success away from home. They walked away with a 78-70 win over the St. Thomas (MN) Tommies on Thursday.

Meanwhile, it was close but no cigar for the Leathernecks as they fell 84-81 to the North Dakota State Bison on Thursday.

North Dakota is the clear underdog, so they're hoping it's the size of the fight that determines this one. They hadn't treated bettors all too well in the past (they are 8-16), but they might be worth taking a chance on now after beating the spread two games in a row.

North Dakota's win brought them up to 6-20 while WIU's loss pulled them down to 14-11. A pair of defensive numbers to keep in mind before tip-off: The Fighting Hawks have allowed their opponents to shoot 48.70% from the floor on average, which is the 354th highest shooting percentage allowed in college basketball. The Leathernecks have experienced some struggles of their own as they are stumbling into the game with the 18th most points allowed per game in college basketball, having given up 76.6 on average. It's possible one of these Achilles' heels will wind up tripping the losing team up.

How To Watch

  • When: Saturday at 3 p.m. ET
  • Where: Western Hall -- Macomb, Illinois
  • Follow: CBS Sports App

Odds

The Leathernecks are a big 12.5-point favorite against the Fighting Hawks, according to the latest college basketball odds.

The oddsmakers had a good feel for the line for this one, as the game opened with the Leathernecks as a 13-point favorite.

Over/Under: -108

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Series History

North Dakota have won five out of their last seven games against Western Illinois.

  • Jan 13, 2022 - Western Illinois 73 vs. North Dakota 68
  • Jan 30, 2021 - Western Illinois 99 vs. North Dakota 87
  • Jan 29, 2021 - North Dakota 83 vs. Western Illinois 81
  • Feb 15, 2020 - North Dakota 86 vs. Western Illinois 83
  • Jan 25, 2020 - North Dakota 83 vs. Western Illinois 77
  • Feb 01, 2019 - North Dakota 74 vs. Western Illinois 73
  • Jan 12, 2019 - North Dakota 71 vs. Western Illinois 65