Our Penn State vs. Iowa prediction based on the best college basketball odds expects a high-scoring game led by Hawkeyes star Caitlin Clark.
The Iowa Hawkeyes take on the Penn State Lady Lions on Friday as conference tournaments get underway. Penn State beat the Wisconsin Badgers to reach the second round of the Big Ten Tournament. It's a tall task for the Nittany Lions to try and take down an Iowa team that's among the favorites in the March Madness odds at our best sports betting sites.
Led by Caitlin Clark, the favorite in the Women's Wooden Award odds, Iowa beat Penn State 111-93 in the regular season. This showdown highlighted the Lady Lions' defense's shortcomings. However, Penn State has had one of the best offenses in college basketball this season and is poised to keep this one high-scoring.
In conjunction with our College Basketball Best Bets, here is our best Penn State vs. Iowa prediction and college basketball picks (odds via our best March Madness betting sites; pick confidence based on a 1-to-5-star scale).
Penn State vs. Iowa prediction
Best odds: -114 via FanDuel
It's no secret that Iowa is the best offense in the country this season. With Clark leading the way, the Hawkeyes are averaging 92.7 points per game, the most in the country, and have been scoring 93.9 per game in Big Ten matchups. Clark's 32.3 points per game are the most in college basketball, and her unlimited range has helped the Hawkeyes lead the country in threes per game (11.1) while shooting the eighth-highest 3-point percentage in the sport (38.2%).
The Hawkeyes have brought their best against Big Ten opponents, hitting 12.3 threes per game at a 40% rate. This offense is nearly impossible to stop, with Clark getting su pport from Hannah Stuelke and Kate Martin. The Lady Lions already know how difficult it is to slow down this attack; to make matters worse, its defense matches up poorly.
Penn State is allowing 76.3 points per game in conference games, third worst in the Big Ten. Because it plays fast-paced, opponents are taking 63.1 shots per game and hitting 43.7% from the field. Similarly to Iowa, just to a lesser degree, the Lady Lions' style leads to plenty of points on offense but more opportunities for opponents.
Luckily, Carolyn Kieger's team is led by two All-Big Ten talents in Ashley Owusu and Makenna Marisa, who have helped the Lady Lions score the seventh most points per game in the country this season (84.4). Hitting 38.6% of its threes and 49.5% from the floor, Penn State might not win, but it should be able to score. For as dominant as Iowa is, its defense allows 75.9 points per game in conference play, four most in the Big Ten.
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Penn State vs. Iowa best odds
| DraftKings | FanDuel | BetMGM | bet365 | BetRivers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| N/A | Over 180.5 | N/A | N/A | Over 180.5 |
| N/A | -114 | N/A | N/A | -114 |
Only a handful of our best sports betting sites offer a line on the Penn State vs. Iowa game at the time of writing. Both FanDuel and BetRivers offer the same odds on the game total, and we'd take the Over on 180.5 points up to -130 while feeling comfortable betting the Over on a game total as high as 184.5. With -114 odds, there's an implied probability of 53.27% that the Over will hit.
These are two of the best offenses in the Big Ten who play very similar brands of basketball. Both are high paced, efficient 3-point shooting programs led by All-Big Ten talent. They both prioritize offense and scoring, which can leave their defenses lacking at times.
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Penn State vs. Iowa odds analysis
The Iowa Hawkeyes opened as an 18.5-point favorite over the Lady Lions at our best sports betting sites. We expect that to shift further in Iowa's favor by tip-off after the Clark-led Hawkeyes beat Penn State by 18 the first time around. Iowa is 16-12 ATS this season, while Penn State is 16-10 ATS.
With these being two of the highest-scoring offenses in college basketball, the game total opened at 180.5, and it could climb a few more points through out the day. While it's a high game total, it's deserved after these two programs combined for 204 points during their Feb. 8 matchup.
Penn State vs. Iowa game info
- When: Friday, March 8 at 6:30 p.m. ET
- Where: Target Center, Minneapolis, Minn.
- How to watch: Big Ten Network
Penn State-Iowa prediction made Friday at 10:05 a.m. ET.
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