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For the third time in a week, the No. 20 Loyola-Chicago Ramblers will take on the Southern Illinois Salukis Friday at noon as the first quarterfinal game of the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament.
Loyola and SIU faced each other last Friday and Saturday, February 26-27 to finish the regular season. The Ramblers won 60-52 in the first game, and 65-58 in overtime in the second.
Loyola-Chicago (21-4, 16-2 MVC) are the best defense in America by adjusted rating according to KenPom.com, and concede just 87 points per 100 possessions by their opponents. They also are one of the slowest teams outside of Virginia in college basketball, getting just 63.8 possessions per games themselves.
The Salukis (11-13, 5-13 MVC) have lost six of their last eight, but defeated Bradley yesterday 73-63 to earn a berth in the quarters of Arch Madness. Ben Harvey came off the bench to lead all scorers with 24 points in 27 minutes, and was 8-of-16 from the floor and 5-of-5 from the free throw line with five rebounds.
Game Time/TV Channel/Streaming
You can watch Loyola vs. Southern Illinois on Friday, March 5th at 12:00 p.m. ET on ESPN+, a subscription service available as an add-on from ESPN even for non-subscribers.
Point Spread, Totals, Odds, Trends
Point spread: Loyola -14
Point Total: 124
Moneyline: Southern Illinois +850, Loyola -1430
- Southern Illinois are 4-1 ATS in their last five games, and the total has gone under eight of nine.
- Loyola-Chicago are 1-6 ATS in their last 7 games, and the total has gone under in 12 of 15.
The Best Bet
Loyola is one of the best defensive teams in America, and they just played two games against the Salukis with a total of 112 and 123 (even with overtime!) last weekend. Look for more lockdown defense and an extremely slow pace on both sides.
Pick: Under 124
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