The No. 17 Illinois Fighting Illini will look to continue their winning ways against the Penn State Nittany Lions in a Big Ten Conference matchup on Saturday. The Fighting Illni (7-2, 0-1), who have beaten Penn State four consecutive times, are 16-8 against the Nittany Lions (6-3, 0-1) in games played at Champaign, Illinois. Illinois has won seven consecutive home games overall, the third-longest active streak in the conference. Penn State had been red hot, winning six of its first seven games of the season before losing in double overtime at Clemson and at home against Michigan State.

The game from State Farm Center in Champaign tips off at noon ET. Illinois is favored by 10.5 points at Caesars Sportsbook, while the over/under for total points is set at 140.5 (see up-to-date odds for every game this week on our college basketball odds page).

Before making any Penn State vs. Illinois picks, you NEED to check out the college basketball predictions from the SportsLine Projection Model.

The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every Division I college basketball game 10,000 times. Over the past six years, the proprietary computer model has generated more than $1,400 for $100 players on its top-rated college basketball picks against the spread. Anybody who has followed it has seen profitable returns!

The model knows the Fighting Illini are led by senior guard Terrence Shannon Jr., who is averaging 19.3 points per game, fourth-best in the Big Ten and 39th in the country. He is also averaging 6.2 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game. He has started all nine games for Illinois and is coming off a 16-point effort, including 12 in overtime, and a career-high three steals in the win over Texas. He was named the Big Ten Player of the Week on Nov. 21, after scoring 29 points in the win over No. 8 UCLA. In that game, he tied the school record with eight 3-pointers and grabbed 10 rebounds for his third career double-double.

The model also knows Nittany Lions senior guard Jalen Pickett has been red hot of late, reaching double figures in each of the last four games. He registered his second double-double of the season against Michigan State, and was two assists short of his second triple-double of the year. Against the Spartans, Pickett scored 13 points, while grabbing 17 rebounds. He registered 15 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists in a 68-62 win over Butler in the Gavitt Tipoff Games on Nov. 14.

Now, it has set its sights on Penn State vs. Illinois. It is leaning Over on the total and it has also generated an against-the-spread pick that hits in well over 50% of simulations! You ABSOLUTELY need to see it before locking in any college basketball picks.

Who wins Penn State vs. Illinois? And which side of the spread hits in well over 50% of simulations? ... Join SportsLine right now to find out which side of the Penn State vs. Illinois spread you should be all over Saturday, all from the model on a roll on college basketball picks!