Halftime Report

Indiana State has overcome an early deficit to take the lead back in this one. They have a bit of a cushion as they currently lead UIC 52-41.

If Indiana State keeps playing like this, they'll bump their record up to 11-12 in no time. On the other hand, UIC will have to make due with a 14-8 record unless they turn things around (and fast).

Who's Playing

Indiana State Sycamores @ UIC Flames

Current Records: Indiana State 10-12, UIC 14-7

How To Watch

What to Know

UIC is 0-4 against Indiana State since January of 2023 but things could change on Saturday. Both will face off in a Missouri Valley battle at 3:00 p.m. ET at Credit Union 1 Arena. Coming in fresh off a victory as the underdog, the Flames will stroll into this one as the favorite.

UIC will bounce into Saturday's contest after (finally) beating Bradley, who they had gone 1-7 against in their eight prior meetings. UIC put the hurt on Bradley with a sharp 93-70 win on Wednesday. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest victory the Flames have posted since November 16, 2024.

Jordan Mason and Javon Jackson were among the main playmakers for UIC as the former went 8 for 12 en route to 22 points plus seven assists and seven rebounds and the latter scored 25 points in addition to five steals. The dominant performance also gave Jackson a new career-high in threes (four). Another player making a difference was Ahmad Henderson II, who scored 17 points plus three steals.

Meanwhile, Indiana State finally caught a break after six consecutive losses. They walked away with a 72-67 win over Missouri State on Wednesday.

Indiana State got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was Jaden Daughtry out in front who almost dropped a double-double on 18 points and nine rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Samage Teel, who scored 20 points in addition to two steals.

Even though they won, Indiana State struggled to work together and finished the game with only eight assists. Sadly, that's becoming something of a trend for them; they were averaging 16.6 assists per game earlier this season, but in their last five matches they've fallen to only 10.6 per game.

UIC pushed their record up to 14-7 with the win, which was their fourth straight on the road. As for Indiana State, their victory ended a four-game drought at home and bumped them up to 10-12.

Some high-performance offense is likely on the agenda as the two teams are some of the highest scoring teams in the league. UIC hasn't had any problem running up the score this season, having averaged 80.7 points per game. However, it's not like Indiana State struggles in that department as they've been averaging 79.6. With both teams so easily able to put up points, the only question left is who can run the score up higher.

UIC lost to Indiana State at home by a decisive 88-73 margin when the teams last played back in February of 2024. Will UIC have more luck at home instead of on the road?

Odds

UIC is a big 7.5-point favorite against Indiana State, according to the latest college basketball odds.

The oddsmakers were right in line with the betting community on this one, as the game opened as a 7.5-point spread, and stayed right there.


The oddsmakers are expecting fireworks from the offense and set the over/under at a high 162 points.

See college basketball picks for every single game, including this one, from SportsLine's advanced computer model. Get picks now.

Series History

Indiana State has won all of the games they've played against UIC in the last 2 years.

  • Feb 24, 2024 - Indiana State 88 vs. UIC 73
  • Jan 24, 2024 - Indiana State 89 vs. UIC 83
  • Feb 15, 2023 - Indiana State 79 vs. UIC 60
  • Jan 07, 2023 - Indiana State 80 vs. UIC 60