Iowa vs. Virginia Odds
| Iowa Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+2 -105 | 130 -110o / -110u | +120 |
| Virginia Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-2 -115 | 130 -110o / -110u | -140 |
Iowa will face off against the Virginia Cavaliers on Monday night in Charlottesville.
It will be the first game of the 2021 Big Ten/ACC Challenge. Iowa is 8-12 in the early-season event, but has won its last three games and six of the last eight.
The Hawkeyes (6-0 this season) will look to keep their unbeaten streak alive. However, they have yet to beat anyone inside the top 200, per KenPom.
Meanwhile, Virginia is on a four-game winning streak after losses to Navy and Houston to start the season. Virginia has once again been one of the best teams in the country defensively, limiting opponents to an average of just 49 points per game.
Iowa, however, has been one of the best teams in the country offensively, averaging 97.2 points per game. Will the Virginia defense be able to slow down the Hawkeyes?
Iowa Hawkeyes
Iowa had yet another dominating win in its last game, beating Portland State 85-51. Against the Vikings, Iowa shot 48.5% overall while going 31.5% from outside the arc.
Keegan Murray led both teams, recording 23 points and nine rebounds in 27 minutes. Murray has been a crucial part of the Hawkeyes' team, leading them in scoring in every game so far this season while shooting 62.2% from the field. He is also grabbing 8.8 rebounds a game.
Joining Keegan for the Hawkeyes is his brother Kris, who is averaging 12.8 points — on 58.5% shooting — and 6.8 rebounds. The team has two other double-digit scorers in Patrick McCaffery (12.5 PPG) and Jordan Bohannon (10.0 PPG)
The Hawkeyes are turning the ball over nine times a game on average while committing 13.3 personal fouls per game. As a team, Iowa is recording 41.7 rebounds per game and has accounted for 120 assists so far this year, which ranks 17th in the country.
The Hawkeyes have shot 38.5% as a team from beyond the 3-point line and 83.2% from the free-throw line.
On defense, the Hawkeyes have been able to force 17.5 turnovers on a nightly basis while drawing 20.8 fouls per game. They currently rank 226th in college basketball in giving up assists to opponents.
Opponents have also been able to shoot 39.9% from the field and 28.8% from 3-point land while recording 33.3 rebounds per contest. The Hawkeyes are 123rd in college basketball in opponent points per game, allowing 65.5 on average.
Virginia Cavaliers
In their last game, the Virginia Cavaliers posted a convincing 61-43 win over Lehigh. In that game Virginia allowed Lehigh to grab 31 rebounds, seven of which were offensive.
The Cavaliers finished the game shooting 45.6% from the floor and 40% from 3. The Cavaliers didn't get to the line much in the game, with only nine free throw attempts, but when they did it wasn't pretty as they shot just 55.6% from the line.
The Cavaliers snagged 33 rebounds in total — 25 being defensive — while eight came on the offensive end.
They have committed 14.1 fouls a game so far this year and have been able to shoot 71.9% from the charity stripe.
Virginia has never been an elite scoring team, but this year appears to be even worse than normal. The Cavaliers are shooting 42.2% from the field, ranking 250th in college basketball. They are also one of the worst in the country in points per game, ranking 306th.
However, Virginia and coach Tony Bennett are known for one thing year in and year out: defense. The Cavaliers are ranked third in Division I, giving up just 53.6 points per game on average. They have also been able to force 13.3 turnovers per game while limiting teams to just 36.9% shooting from the field.
Teams have been able to have slightly better success from 3-point land, as they average 29.9%.
Iowa vs. Virginia Betting Pick
The Hawkeyes have been one of the best teams in college basketball to start the season, but the same can't be said about the teams they've beaten.
Iowa has wins over Longwood, Kansas City, NC Central, Alabama State, Western Michigan and Portland State. Teams Iowa has beaten so far this season combine for just a 15-22 record. All of the Hawkeyes' wins have also been on their home court in Iowa City.
Iowa is one of the best offensive teams in the country and I think it will only get better as the season goes on. However, I haven't seen enough from the Hawkeyes yet to trust them in their first road game of the season going up against the best team they've played so far by quite a wide margin.
Im taking the Cavs at -1.5 and I would bet them up to -3.
Pick: Virginia -3 or better
