Dainja leads Illinois against Northwestern after 22-point performance
Illinois Fighting Illini (9-4, 0-2 Big Ten) at Northwestern Wildcats (10-3, 1-1 Big Ten)
Evanston, Illinois; Wednesday, 9 p.m. EST
FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK LINE: Northwestern -2.5; over/under is 132.5
BOTTOM LINE: Illinois plays the Northwestern Wildcats after Dain Dainja scored 22 points in Illinois' 85-52 victory over the Bethune-Cookman Wildcats.
The Wildcats are 7-2 on their home court. Northwestern has a 9-3 record against opponents above .500.
The Fighting Illini are 0-2 in Big Ten play. Illinois ranks eighth in the Big Ten with 14.3 assists per game led by Coleman Hawkins averaging 3.8.
The matchup Wednesday is the first meeting this season between the two teams in conference play.
TOP PERFORMERS: Chase Audige is shooting 35.8% from beyond the arc with 2.2 made 3-pointers per game for the Wildcats, while averaging 15.4 points, 3.2 assists and 2.5 steals. Boo Buie is shooting 34.8% and averaging 13.8 points over the past 10 games for Northwestern.
Hawkins is averaging 9.2 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.8 assists for the Fighting Illini. Terrence Shannon Jr. is averaging 17.8 points and 5.4 rebounds while shooting 45.5% over the past 10 games for Illinois.
LAST 10 GAMES: Wildcats: 7-3, averaging 65.2 points, 34.8 rebounds, 12.5 assists, 8.5 steals and 4.9 blocks per game while shooting 37.4% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 57.8 points per game.
Fighting Illini: 6-4, averaging 73.9 points, 34.9 rebounds, 13.4 assists, 7.5 steals and 5.6 blocks per game while shooting 45.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 65.8 points.
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
