Illinois State Redbirds vs. Valparaiso Beacons: How to watch NCAA Basketball online, TV channel, live stream info, start time​on February 1, 2025 at 10:00 am

How to watch Illinois State vs. Valparaiso basketball game

​How to watch Illinois State vs. Valparaiso basketball game   

Who’s Playing

Valparaiso Beacons @ Illinois State Redbirds

Current Records: Valparaiso 10-12, Illinois State 13-9

How To Watch

• When: Saturday, February 1, 2025 at 5 p.m. ET
• Where: CEFCU Arena — Normal, Illinois
• TV: ESPN Plus
• Follow: CBS Sports App
• Online Streaming:  Catch select College Basketball matches on Fubo (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)

What to Know

Illinois State is 1-9 against Valparaiso since February of 2020 but they’ll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Saturday. Both will face off in a Missouri Valley battle at 5:00 p.m. ET at CEFCU Arena. The Redbirds are strutting in with some offensive muscle as they’ve averaged 76.4 points per game this season.

Illinois State took a loss when they played away from home on Saturday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Wednesday. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with an 81-78 win over Belmont. Kudos to the oddsmakers for accurately forecasting both the winner and the close margin.

Illinois State’s success was spearheaded by the efforts of Chase Walker, who went 9 for 12 en route to 22 points plus six rebounds, and Johnny Kinziger, who went 8 for 15 en route to 22 points. The dominant performance also gave Kinziger a new career-high in threes (five).

Meanwhile, Valparaiso’s recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Tuesday after their sixth straight defeat. They fell to S. Illinois 79-75.

Despite their loss, Valparaiso saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. All Wright, who posted 22 points in addition to two steals, was perhaps the best of all. Wright had some trouble finding his footing against Evansville on Saturday, so this was a nice turnaround. Cooper Schwieger was another key player, scoring 13 points along with five rebounds and three blocks.

Illinois State’s victory was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 13-9. As for Valparaiso, their defeat dropped their record down to 10-12.

Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Illinois State hasn’t given up the ball easily this season, having only averaged 10.5 turnovers per game. However, it’s not like Valparaiso struggles in that department as they’ve been averaging only 10.5. Given these competing strengths, it’ll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.

Illinois State couldn’t quite finish off Valparaiso in their previous matchup back in March of 2024 and fell 75-72. Will Illinois State have more luck at home instead of on the road?

Series History

Valparaiso has won 9 out of their last 10 games against Illinois State.

• Mar 03, 2024 – Valparaiso 75 vs. Illinois State 72
• Jan 14, 2024 – Valparaiso 59 vs. Illinois State 50
• Feb 11, 2023 – Valparaiso 81 vs. Illinois State 76
• Jan 21, 2023 – Valparaiso 71 vs. Illinois State 51
• Feb 09, 2022 – Illinois State 78 vs. Valparaiso 75
• Jan 02, 2022 – Valparaiso 81 vs. Illinois State 76
• Jan 24, 2021 – Valparaiso 70 vs. Illinois State 66
• Jan 23, 2021 – Valparaiso 69 vs. Illinois State 60
• Feb 15, 2020 – Valparaiso 65 vs. Illinois State 62
• Feb 01, 2020 – Valparaiso 80 vs. Illinois State 70