On Friday at Canseco Fieldhouse Indianapolis, the No. 4 seed in the Big Ten Tournament will face the No.5 seeded Illinois in one of the best matchups of the tournament. With identical records of 19-12 and 9-9 in the Big Ten, both teams enter the battle.

When it comes to their play on defense, the two teams differ. Illinois are only ranked 175th in the country but that is much better than Michigan Wolverines which ranks a dismal 299th among NCAA Division 1 schools whereas Illinois is the better team on the boards. Michigan is averaging 32 per game whereas Illinois averages 35 rebounds per game.

This game will be no different as three point shooting is always a hit or miss affair in tournament play. Illinois is hitting 39 percent from behind the three point arc whereas Michigan is hitting 35 percent from three point territory. With a 46 percent shooting percentage at three point range, Demetri McCamey leads Illinois as well as he is the shooter of choice for Illinois in crunch time.

Illinois is the best shooting team from the field. They have the ability to take over the game when they get on a role as they rank 34th in the country in shooting percentage. Michigan has yet to win a game or shoot well against superior competition as they ranks 120th in shooting percentage.

if Illinois get hot in the first half it could be all over by the early second half even though March Madness betting Odds have Illinois favored by 3 points in this closely matched contest.

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