Penn State vs. Iowa: Preview, odds and best bets

With March Madness around the corner, momentum is a big factor for all remaining games in college basketball. Penn State aims to maintain its momentum after an outright victory against Indiana University, 83-74. With a record of 2-3 in their last five games, the Nittany Lions look to break through the .500 threshold on the season by defeating the Hawkeyes.

This will be a tough matchup for the Nittany Lions considering they are 2-6 on the road in conference play. On the season, the Hawkeyes are 11-3 at home and 5-3 in conference play.

The one big factor that sticks out in this game is that the Nittany Lions are 11-6 ATS when matching up against another Big 10 team, while the Hawkeyes are 6-11 ATS when competing against another Big 10 school.

Here are the odds for the game from the best sports betting sites:

As shown above, BetMGM Sportsbook offers some of the best odds for this game.

The Hawkeyes are coming off a tough loss against the No. 12 Fighting Illini, 95-85. The scoring was led by Josh Dix with 20 points, Tony Perkins with 18 points and Ben Krikke adding 15 points.

The Hawkeyes thrive on scoring inside the paint and look to penetrate. The team has only attempted 522 three-pointers this year, making only 175 of them equaling 33% for the year. When playing inside the arc, the Hawkeyes are 47% from the floor and have made over 450 free throws.

For Penn State to win this NCAAB game they need to protect the paint and condense their defense. Leaving the interior clogged on defense will challenge Iowa to develop another method of scoring, as they like to play a lot of pick and roll, looking for Krikke down low.

As for an offensive game plan, the Nittany Lions need to attack the paint right out of the gate. The Hawkeyes thrive on their big men when it comes to the pick-and-roll offense. If Penn State can attack the starting big men for Iowa and get them in foul trouble, the Hawkeyes will have their hands full and be forced to play without key contributors.

Senior Ace Baldwin Jr. will be crucial in this matchup. Coming off a home win against the Indiana Hoosiers, Baldwin Jr. played 40 minutes and finished up with 23 points, 4 steals and 9 assists, going 8-8 from the charity stripe.

Zach Hicks will also need to step up big in the upcoming matchup. Against Indiana, Hicks collected 17 points, 7 rebounds and went 4-8 from the three-point line. With Hicks extending his streak to seven games straight with double figures, we can expect him to continue contributing offensively.

In addition to Hicks and Baldwin Jr., the Nittany Lions need Puff Johnson to break his cold streak and start connecting on his three-pointers. On the season, he is barely shooting above 30% from long range, but he added 8 points in the win against Indiana, going 2-3 from deep.

Although Penn State has lost the last 15 of 16 meetings between the two, the Nittany Lions will cover the spread, and may even come out on top with the win.

Both teams look to score from inside the arc and like to cause havoc inside the paint. With that said, Penn State also forces 15.3 turnovers a game, ensuring that Iowa will need to make smart passes and protect the ball at all costs.

Additionally, with Baldwin Jr. and Hicks continuing their hot offensive streaks, the Hawkeyes will need to play tight defense on them and convert on every offensive possession just to stay in the game.

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