Western Illinois vs Little Rock Prediction 2/22/25 College Basketball Picks

The Western Illinois Leathernecks and the Little Rock Trojans meet Saturday in college basketball action from the Jack Stephens Center. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Western Illinois vs. Little Rock prediction.

Matchup History

The Little Rock Trojans emerged victorious in the first meeting this season by a final score of 62-51 back on January 23rd, 2025 at Western Illinois, bringing their record to 3-0 all time against the Leathernecks, both straight up and against the spread.

Western Illinois Recap

The Western Illinois Leathernecks come into this game looking to bounce back after ending up with an 87-66 loss at the hands of Southeast Missouri State last time out to fall to 10-18 on the year. After this game, Western Illinois will head home for a game against Lindenwood.

Leathernecks Looking To Spring Huge Upset

Marko Maletic leads the Leathernecks in scoring with 17.1 PPG along with 3.6 RPG while Ryan Myers has 13.3 PPG with 2.5 RPG and Sean Smith has 10.4 PPG with 4.7 RPG and a team-high 3.8 APG and 1.5 SPG to lead the Leathernecks in assists and steals and to cap off the trio of double-digit scorers for Western Illinois up to this point in the year. Julius Rollins has 8.7 PPG with 4 RPG while Tay Knox has 4 PPG and a team-high 5.3 RPG to lead the Leathernecks on the glass up to this point in the year. As a team, Western Illinois is averaging 68 PPG on 43.5% shooting from the field, 37.4% from behind the arc and 69.1% from the foul line so far this season.

Little Rock Recap

The Little Rock Trojans come into this game looking to bounce back from a 93-92 loss at the hands of Lindenwood last time out to sink to 17-11 on the year. After this game, Little Rock will head on the road for a game against Eastern Illinois.

Trojans Looking For Some Consistency After Alternating Wins & Losses In Last 4 Games

Jonathan Lawson leads the Trojans in scoring and assists with 15.9 PPG and 3.5 APG along with 5.3 RPG while Mwani Wilkinson has 13.2 PPG with a team-high 7.3 RPG to lead the Cougars on the glass. Ante Beljan has 10.8 PPG with 4.6 RPG this season to round out the trio of double-digit scorers for Little Rock up to this point in the year while Isaiah Lewis has 9.9 PPG with 3.4 RPG and 3.2 APG. As a team, Little Rock is averaging 69.5 PPG on 44.8% shooting from the field, 37.1% from three and 70.8% from the foul line this season.

Why the Little Rock Trojans will win

• Western Illinois has lost eight of its last nine road games.
• Little Rock has won each of its last five home games following an overtime loss.

Total Points Facts

• Each of Western Illinois’ last six games against Conference opponents have produced a total of 134+ points.
• Thirty-one of Little Rock’s last 38 games at Jack Stephens Center have produced a total of 134+ points.

Western Illinois vs. Little Rock Prediction

I’m rolling with Little Rock in this game. I just think that the Trojans are the better team here and Western Illinois has already been eliminated from contention with only the top 8 teams in the OVC making the conference tournament. The Leathernecks just haven’t been able to cut it for the better part of the season and I don’t think that changes here considering that Little Rock’s had all of the head-to-head success in this short history between these two teams. Give me Little Rock at home in their final home game of the regular season.