VCU Rams vs Illinois Fighting Illini Prediction, 3/21/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: VCU Rams vs Illinois Fighting Illini

Date: Saturday, March 21, 2026

Location: Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, SC

TV: CBS

Odds/Point Spread: Illinois (-11)

The Illinois Fighting Illini (24-8) will try to defeat the VCU Rams (27-7) at Bon Secours Wellness Arena on Saturday in the 2nd round of the NCAA Tournament. Illinois opens this game as 11-point favorites. The over/under is 152.

The VCU Rams faced off with North Carolina and went home with a win by a final score of 82-78 in their last game. In the matter of fouls, the Rams walked away with 17 and North Carolina recorded 17 fouls. They also made 8 of their 29 attempts from long range. North Carolina finished the contest at 60.0% at the free throw line by converting 12 of 20 attempts. In addition, North Carolina totaled 39 rebounds (7 offensive, 32 defensive), but finished the game with no rejections. North Carolina recorded 18 dimes and had 8 steals in the matchup. When talking about defending, VCU let their opponent shoot 41.4% from the field on 29 out of 70 shooting. They also distributed 12 assists for the game in addition to forcing the other team into 7 turnovers and earning 5 steals. Regarding rebounding, they collected 35 with 6 of them being offensive. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Rams knocked down 11 of 16 tries for a percentage of 68.8%. VCU walked away from the contest with a 45.5% field goal percentage (30 out of 66) and made 11 of their 26 shots from distance.

Terrence Hill Jr. is one player who played a role in the game. He finished with 34 points on 13 out of 23 shooting. He played for 40 mins played and also totaled 5 rebounds. He ended up shooting 56.5% from the floor and recorded 5 assists.

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VCU comes into this matchup with a win-loss mark of 27-7 on the year. They lose possession by turning the ball over 10.5 times per game and as a team they commit 17.3 personal fouls on a nightly basis. As a team, VCU is collecting 36.7 rebounds per game and is sitting with 479 dimes this year, which is 127th in college hoops in terms of passing. The Rams are shooting 36.7% on shots from beyond the arc (317 of 864) and 73.9% from the free throw line. They average 81.6 points per outing (58th in the nation) while shooting 46.0% from the field.

Defensively, the Rams are able to force 11.9 turnovers per game while drawing 20.1 personal fouls. They surrender 33.1% on shots from distance and they are 113th in college in points per game allowed (71.5). The Rams defensively are giving up a FG percentage of 43.1% (864 of 2,004) and they concede 34.3 boards per game as a group. They are currently ranked 192nd in Division 1 in giving up assists to their opponents with 435 conceded on the campaign.

In their last game, the Illinois Fighting Illini got the victory with a final of 105-70 against Penn. The Fighting Illini were able to corral 28 defensive rebounds and 18 offensive boards totaling 46 in the game. They turned the ball over 2 times, while recording 2 steals for the game. Penn committed 22 fouls in the matchup which took the Fighting Illini to the free throw line for a total of 21 attempts. They were able to bury 16 of the free throw attempts for a clip of 76.2%. When it comes to 3-pointers, Illinois knocked down 15 of 36 attempts (41.7%). Overall, the Fighting Illini finished shooting 37 out of 74 from the floor which had them at 50.0%. The Fighting Illini allowed Penn to make 30 of their 67 attempts from the floor which left them with a rate of 44.8% in this matchup. They went 30.0% from behind the 3-point line by hitting 9 out of 30 and ended up shooting 1 of 2 at the free throw line (50.0%). In relation to how they rebounded, Illinois permitted Penn to pull down 21 in total (7 on the offensive glass).

David Mirkovic ended up being a factor for the Fighting Illini in the matchup. He buried 11 out of 17 for the game giving him a rate of 64.7%, and earned 17 rebounds. He had 29 points in his 28 mins of playing time and tallied 3 dimes for this game.

Illinois has a mark of 24-8 so far this season. The Fighting Illini are responsible for committing 13.4 fouls every game and they shoot 78.9% from the charity stripe. They are getting an assist 14.7 times per contest (124th in the nation) and they turn it over 8.9 times per contest. Illinois has accounted for 2,700 pts for the season (84.4 per game) and they collect 40.7 boards per game. As an offense, the Fighting Illini are shooting 46.3% from the field, which is 111th in the nation.

The Illinois defense concedes 31.4% on shots from distance (268 of 854) and opponents are making 73.4% of their shots from the free throw line. They allow 13.3 assists and 31.1 total rebounds per game, which ranks them 181st and 25th in college hoops. The Fighting Illini are ranked 69th in college hoops in points given up per game with 69.8. They are forcing 7.8 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 41.0% from the floor (36th in college hoops).

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Illinois (-11)

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