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The Pennsylvania Quakers take on the Illinois Fighting Illini in Champaign, IL. Tip-off is set for 8:30 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1.
Illinois is favored by -28.5 points on the spread, and the total is set at 162.5 points.
Here's my Penn vs. Illinois predictionand college basketball picks for November 5, 2026.
Pick: Illinois -28.5
My Penn vs Illinois best betis on the Fighting Illini to cover the spread. Be sure to find the best lines by using our live NCAAB odds page and download the Action Network app for the latest picks and analysis.
Penn vs Illinois spread:Penn +28.5 (-118), Illinois -28.5 (-104)
Penn vs Illinois over/under:162.5 (-110o / -110u)
Year 2 of the Fran McCaffery experience at Penn should be another successful season, as he returns four starters and five reserves from 2025-26.
McCaffery is building something special, losing only Ethan Roberts from last season. The swingman averaged nearly 17 points and grabbed close to four rebounds per game for the Quakers.
Returning sophomore Dalton Scantlebury is a guy to look out for this season. The 6-foot-9 forward averaged 5.9 points and 3.9 rebounds per game while shooting over 51% from the floor.
Augustus Gerhart is another player Penn is hoping will break out this season. The senior forward posted similar numbers to Scantlebury last season.
The Quakers also bring in junior guard Sir Mohammed, who spent his first two collegiate seasons at Notre Dame .
With the number of players McCaffery is bringing back, this could be a lethal bunch in the Ivy League.
If you didn't already know, I'm in love with this year's Fighting Illini team. I wrote in my Big Ten preview that this team is well worth backing to win it all this season.
Brad Underwood kept many key players from last year's Final Four run. The head coach knows how talented this group can be on offense.
Last season, Illinois finished second to Purdue in adjusted offensive efficiency, per KenPom. That's why Underwood's main focus this offseason was improving the defense, stating, "We have to get better."
Similar to Penn, bringing back that many players speaks volumes about how attractive the system and culture are to big-name talents, making Illinois an extremely dangerous team. The Illini showed that on opening night, beating Fairleigh Dickinson 120-45 as a 40-point favorite.
Now, for this matchup, Illinois likely won't win by that much, as Penn is 232 spots ahead of Fairleigh Dickinson in Bart Torvik's ratings. However, the Illini should still steamroll.
There's no reason for this Fighting Illini team to be looking ahead to Tuesday's matchup against Texas Tech . Not only is that too large of a gap to overlook, but it's also too early in the season to start looking ahead and taking your foot off the gas.
They're going to clean up the flaws and use Penn as a get-ready game for next Tuesday.
Penn has yet to see any real game action this season. All the Quakers have had to prepare for Illinois is their annual Red and Blue Scrimmage. Yikes.
Illinois already has real game experience under its belt and has played at an incredibly high level out of the gate. Meanwhile, Penn has spent the past few months scrimmaging against itself.
This one could be a slap in the mouth for the Quakers.
Pick: Illinois -28.5
