Drake vs Southern Illinois Prediction 2/1/25 College Basketball Picks

The Drake Bulldogs and the Southern Illinois Salukis meet Saturday in college basketball action from the Athletics-Recreation Center. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Drake vs. Southern Illinois prediction.

Drake Recap

The Drake Bulldogs come into this game looking to build on their 66-52 win over Northern Iowa last time out to improve to 19-2 on the year. After this game, Drake will head on the road to take on Murray State.

Bulldogs Win 7th Straight

Bennett Stirtz leads the Bulldogs in scoring and assists with 17.7 PPG and 6.5 APG along with 4 RPG while Mitch Mascari has 11.9 PPG and Daniel Abreu has 11.3 PPG with 3.2 RPG to cap off the trio of double-digit scorers for Drake up to this point in the year. Tavion Banks has added 8.9 PPG with 4.5 RPG while Cam Manyawu has 7.9 PPG with a team-leading 5.9 RPG to lead the Bulldogs on the glass up to this point in the year. As a team, Drake is averaging 71.4 PPG on 48.7% shooting from the field, 35.4% from three, and 70.9% from the foul line so far this season.

Why the Drake Bulldogs will win

• Drake has won each of its last seven games.
• Southern Illinois has lost four of its last five day games.

Southern Illinois Recap

The Southern Illinois Salukis come into this game looking to add on to their 79-75 win over Valparaiso last time out to improve to 10-12 on the year. After this game, Southern Illinois will head on the road again to take on Evansville.

Salukis Win Back-To-Back Games & 5 Of Last 6

Ali Dibba leads the Salukis in scoring with 16.7 PPG along with 4.4 RPG while Kennard Davis Jr. has 15 PPG with 5.3 RPG and a team-high 2.6 APG to lead the Salukis in the assist department up to this point. Jarrett Hensley also has 11.6 PPG with 5.4 RPG to lead the Salukis on the glass so far this season and to cap off the group of double-digit scorers for Southern Illinois. Sheridan Sharp also has a 2.6 APG of his own as well on the year. As a team, Southern Illinois is averaging 73.3 PPG on 45.5% shooting from the field, 32.8% from three, and 67.6% from the foul line this season.

Why the Southern Illinois Salukis will win

• Southern Illinois has won each of its last seven Saturday games against the Missouri Valley Conference.

Total Points Facts

• Twelve of Southern Illinois’ last 14 games against Conference opponents at Banterra Center have produced a total of 134+ points.
• Twelve of Drake’s last 15 day games against the Missouri Valley Conference have produced a total of 131+ points.

Drake vs. Southern Illinois Prediction

I’m on Drake here. The Bulldogs are still the class of the MVC, and despite Southern Illinois going on a nice little run as of late, the fact is that Drake is the best in the conference in most metrics. I’d imagine that SIU is going to be rocking with the conference leaders coming to town, but in the end, I think that Drake ends up being too much for the Salukis on the way to a win and cover here. Give me Drake.