The 11-seed Duquesne Dukes will face the 3-seed Illinois Fighting Illini in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday at the CHI Health Center Omaha in Omaha, Nebraska. The game will tip off at 8:40 PM ET on Saturday night.

The Duquesne Dukes pulled off the upset over the 6-seed BYU Cougars in the first round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament on Thursday. The Dukes' defensive play was key to their success. They held one of the best 3-point shooting teams to only eight 3-point shots made the entire game, which limited the 19^th highest-scoring team in college basketball to only 67 points. 

Duquesne never trailed against the Cougars in the first-round matchup, starting the game off on a 9-0 run and leading by eight at halftime. The Cougars almost made a comeback, cutting the deficit to 60-60 with 1:49 left. However, the Dukes would go on a 5-0 run after the Cougars tied the game. Duquesne won their first NCAA Tournament game since the 1969 NCAA Tournament and extended their winning streak to nine games. 

The Duquesne Dukes will look to keep the momentum going when they face the Big Ten Tournament Champions, the Illinois Fighting Illini, in the 2^nd round of the NCAA Tournament.

The Illinois Fighting Illini kept their winning streak going in the first round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament with an impressive 16-point win against the Morehead State Eagles on Thursday by a score of 85-69, extending their winning streak to five games. Morehead State started the game off on a 9-0 run; however, the Fighting Illini would answer with a 9-2 run to cut the deficit to two points before taking the lead with 5:20 left to go in the first half. 

The Eagles would retake the lead in the 2^nd half after a 3-point shot made by Riley Minix by a score of 43-41. However, that would be the last time the Morehead State Eagles would have the lead the remainder of the game as the Fighting Illini would outscored the Eagles 44-26 to end the game. The Illinois Fighting Illini have been among the highest-scoring teams in college basketball this season, ranking 9^th nationally in scoring with an average of 84.41 points per game. However, they will have their work cut out against a Duquesne Dukes team that held one of the highest-scoring teams to only 67 points in their 1^st round matchup against the BYU Cougars. 

The Illinois Fighting Illini will look to advance to the Sweet 16 for the first time since the 2005 NCAA Tournament, in which they finished as the runner-up in the tournament, losing to the North Carolina Tar Heels when they face the Duquesne Dukes in the 2^nd round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday.

JustBet has the Illinois Fighting Illini listed as 9.5-point favorites against the Duquesne Dukes in the second round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament on Saturday. This will be the third time these programs have faced each other in college basketball and the first since the 1988-89 college basketball season, which resulted in a 112-81 home win for the Illinois Fighting Illini.

Illinois is one of the highest-scoring teams in college basketball this season, ranking 9^th nationally with an average of 84.41 points per game. However, they will have a difficult matchup as they will be facing the Duquesne Dukes, a team that ranks 27^th in defensive efficiency with an average of 66.03 points per game and held one of the highest-scoring teams this season to only 67 points in their first-round matchup. 

I expect the Dukes to rely on their defense and keep this a closer game than the line indicates, which is why I am buying the .5 point and taking the points with the Duquesne Dukes when they face the Illinois Fighting Illini in the second round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament on Saturday.