The Auburn Tigers (20-12) battle the Iowa Hawkeyes (19-13) Thursday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Tip from Legacy Arena In Birmingham, Ala., is set for 6:50 p.m. ET (TNT). Below, we analyze Tipico Sportsbook’s lines around the Auburn vs. Iowa'odds, and make our expert college basketball picks, predictions and bets.
The Tigers are the No. 9 seed in the Midwest Region. Auburn lost its 1st SEC Tournament game to Arkansas 76-73. It lost 3 of its last 4 games, but it does have wins over 7-seed Northwestern and 4-seed Tennessee. The Tigers are led by F Johni Broome, who is averaging 14 points per game.
The Hawkeyes come in as the No. 8 seed. Iowa is led by F Kris Murray, who proved to be one of the best scorers in college hoops, averaging 20.4 points per game. The Hawkeyes lost to Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament 73-69, but it has covered 2 of its last 4 games.