After losing to Maryland in late January, the No. 4 Iowa Hawkeyes have gone on a three-game win streak, one they could extend to four later tonight when they face the Indiana Hoosiers in Bloomington. The Hoosiers are in need of a signature victory following a shocking loss to the Penn State Nittany Lions. Can they get a big one at home?
Read on for more about this game. You can also check out our preview of Oregon vs. California.
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Iowa Hawkeyes vs. Indiana Hoosiers Preview
Where: Bloomington Assembly Hall, Bloomington
When: Thursday, February 11, 9:00 PM ET
Line: Iowa Hawkeyes vs. Indiana Hoosiers – view all NCAA Basketball lines
TV Broadcast: ESPN
Betting on the Iowa Hawkeyes (19-4, 10-1 Big Ten)
After breezing past Illinois on Sunday, 77-65, the Hawkeyes look to extend their win streak to four when they travel to Bloomington, where they are 3-3 SU and 4-2 ATS in their last six trips.
And just like in most of Iowa’s other games, it was the tandem of Jarrod Uthoff and Peter Jok who did most of the heavy lifting against the Fighting Illini. Uthoff had 18 points, while Jok dropped 23 points. Uthoff leads the team in scoring with 18.4 points per game, but is also a big asset on defense, as evidenced by his conference-best average of 2.9 blocks per contest.
Anthony Clemmons and Adam Woodbury, meanwhile, will have to lend ample scoring support to take some pressure off Uthoff and Jok. Both players have stepped up their play of late with Clemmons averaging 10.5 PPG over the last five games. Woodbury, on the other hand, had three double-doubles during the same stretch.
Iowa, which is seventh in adjusted offense per KenPom.com with 118.3 points per 100 possessions, is 4-2 in its last six road games.
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Betting on the Indiana Hoosiers (7-16, 0-10 Big Ten)
No thanks to their sloppy play and the absence of their normally excellent shooting touch, the Hoosiers suffered an embarrassing 68-63 defeat to Penn State.
While that loss was on the road, the Hoosiers were supposed to beat the Nittany Lions, who’re just ranked 108th in the RPI. A chance for Indiana to negate that loss comes later tonight, when the Hoosiers play their first top-five team in the form of Iowa. Dating back to 2012, Indiana is 3-1 SU in four meetings with the Hawkeyes.
Indiana had 15 turnovers and shot just 36.2 percent from the field in the loss to Penn State. The team’s leading scorer, Yogi Ferrell, went just 3-for-12 from the field (1-for-6 from deep) to finish with 13 points. Ferrell averages 17.3 PPG on 47.4 FG% this season, so expect him to have better nights.
There’s a lot more to the Hoosiers’ offense than Ferrell, though. After all, this team is 12th in the nation in scoring (84.1 PPG) and 11th in three-point makes with 10.0 a game. The Hoosiers also have inside threat in freshman Thomas Bryant, who scores 12.1 PPG and grabs 5.6 RPG. Bryant had 10 points and eight boards in the loss to Penn State.
Indiana allows 69.5 PPG this season.
Writer’s Prediction
Indiana wins, 76-73.
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