The No. 5 Iowa Hawkeyes and the Northwestern Wildcats will face off for the second time this season on Sunday in Evanston. The Hawkeyes won the first tussle between these teams, but can the Wildcats tie their season series up? Check out our preview of this game below.
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Betting Preview for the Iowa Hawkeyes vs Northwestern Wildcats NCAA College Basketball Game on January 18 2021
Where: Welsh-Ryan Arena, Evanston, IL
When: Monday, January 18, 2021, 7:00 PM ET
Line: Iowa Hawkeyes (odds) vs. Northwestern Wildcats (odds) – view all 2021 NCAAB lines
TV Broadcast: ESPN
Betting on the Iowa Hawkeyes (odds)
Record: 11-2 Overall / 5-1 Conference
Iowa scored an 86-71 win over the Minnesota Golden Gophers last Sunday at home, thus extending its unbeaten streak to four games. The Hawkeyes have yet to lose this year or since they fell prey to Minnesota on Christmas Day on the road, 102-95. In avenging that loss, Luka Garza went nuclear with 33 points to go with five rebounds and three assists in 34 minutes while Jordan Bohannon had 19 points, 14 assists, and zero turnovers. Both players will be counted upon as usual by the Hawkeyes in the upcoming rematch with Northwestern, which lost to Iowa on Dec. 29, 87-72. Garza must be aching to face the Wildcats again after he was held to only 18 points by Northwestern in that aforementioned game. Bohannon seems to know how to work his way around Northwestern’s defense as he had 24 points and five assists with just a single turnover in the first meeting with the Wildcats.
Iowa, which is second in the nation with an average of 91.9 points per game, is 4-2 against the spread in its last six road games.
Betting on the Northwestern Wildcats (odds)
Record: 6-5 Overall / 3-4 Conference
Northwestern is moving in the exact opposite direction of the Hawkeyes, as the Wildcats are 0-4 straight up in their last four games. In their most recent outing, the Hawkeye got folded by the Ohio State Buckeyes on the road last Sunday, 81-71. Three of those four losses were on the road. Ohio State did a great job of playing the passing lanes on defense against the Wildcats, as Northwestern only had nine assists, significantly fewer than their season average of 17 per game. In the first meeting with Iowa, however, the Wildcats had 15 assists and hit 11 of their 25 attempts from deep. Northwestern was playing the Hawkeyes close until a technical foul on Pete Nance sparked an 11-2 run for Iowa that also saw Iowa’s lead balloon from five to 14 points. Northwestern is averaging 72.2 points per game and is shooting 37.7 percent from deep.
Northwestern is 5-4 against the spread in its last nine games as the home team.
Writer’s Prediction
Iowa wins, 82-74.
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