Iona Gaels vs Alabama Crimson Tide Prediction, 3/20/2021 College Basketball Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Iona Gaels vs Alabama Crimson Tide

Date: Saturday, March 20, 2021

Location: Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN

TV: TBS

Odds/Point Spread: Iona (+17)

The Iona Gaels (12-5) go to Hinkle Fieldhouse on Saturday where they'll meet the Alabama Crimson Tide (24-6) in the NCAA Tournament. The line on this game has Alabama as 17-point favorites. The O/U opens at 143.5.

Iona comes into this game with a win-loss mark of 12-5 so far this year. They cough up possession 15.6 times per contest and as a group are committing 21.8 fouls every game. As a unit, Iona is collecting 37.5 boards per game and has accumulated 237 assists for the season, which ranks 291st in the country in terms of passing. The Gaels are shooting 35.5% on shots from beyond the arc (127 of 358) and 74.3% from the charity stripe. They have an average of 72.2 pts per contest (150th in the nation) while going 44.5% from the floor. When they are on defense, the Gaels are forcing 13.7 turnovers per contest and they draw 19.4 fouls. They are relinquishing 30.1% from beyond the arc and they are ranked 60th in college basketball in opponents PPG (65.9). The Gaels are allowing a FG percentage of 39.9% (363 of 910) and they relinquish 31.5 boards per game as a squad. They are 20th in college basketball in allowing assists to the opposition with 197 surrendered this season.

The Iona Gaels faced the Fairfield Stags and walked away with a win by a score of 60-51 in their last game. Iona walked away from the game having earned a 44.0% FG percentage (22 of 50) and converted 4 of 16 shots from beyond the perimeter. At the charity stripe, the Gaels buried 12 of their 16 shots for a percentage of 75.0%. In relation to hauling in rebounds, they collected 35 with 8 of them being of the offensive sort. They also recorded 9 assists in the game as well as creating 9 turnovers and getting 5 steals. When discussing defending, Iona allowed 30.2% from the field on 16 of 53 shooting. Fairfield recorded 6 assists and had 4 steals for the matchup. In addition, Fairfield had 27 rebounds (6 offensive, 21 defensive) and had 2 rejections. Fairfield finished shooting 73.7% at the free throw line by making 14 of 19 tries. They also converted 5 out of their 21 shots from long range.

Asante Gist is a player who was important for this contest. He notched 18 points on 5 of 13 shooting. He played for 32 mins and snagged 4 rebounds. Gist finished the game at 38.5% from the floor and also dished out 1 assist. An additional guy that was a determining factor in the game for the Gaels was Isaiah Ross. He collected 5 rebounds in 37 minutes played. He finished shooting 35.7% from the field in this contest by going 5-of-14 (13 points). Overall, Ross accounted for 1 assist.

Alabama has a mark of 24-6 this year. The Crimson Tide are committing 18.5 personal fouls every game and they go 72.0% from the charity stripe. They are earning an assist 14.2 times per contest (102nd in college hoops) and they are turning it over 14.0 times per contest. Alabama has scored 2,387 points for the year (79.6 per game) and they pull down 40.5 boards per game. On the offensive side of the court, the Crimson Tide are connecting on 43.1% from the floor, which is ranked 234th in college hoops. The Crimson Tide on the defensive side of the court are 166th in D-1 in PPG given up with 69.8. They give up 11.0 dimes and 38.9 boards per game, which has them ranked 45th and 320th in those categories on the defensive end. The Alabama defense allows 28.8% on 3-point attempts (180 of 625) and opponents are making 68.6% of their free throw shots. They have forced 15.8 turnovers on a nightly basis and allow teams to shoot 40.5% from the field (36th in college hoops).

The last time they took the hardwood, the Alabama Crimson Tide went home victorious with a score of 80-79 when they faced the LSU Tigers. The Crimson Tide corralled 31 defensive rebounds and 16 offensive rebounds for a total of 47 for the matchup. They coughed up the ball 9 times, while earning 4 steals for the game. The Tigers had 13 fouls in the game which got the Crimson Tide to the charity stripe for 5 shots. They were able to convert 2 of them for a percentage of 40.0%. Regarding 3-point attempts, Alabama converted 12 out of their 36 tries (33.3%). When the final whistle blew, the Crimson Tide ended up going 33 out of 76 from the floor which gave them a percentage of 43.4%. The Crimson Tide permitted the Tigers to knock down 30 of 74 attempts from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 40.5% in this matchup. They wrapped up this game 37.0% from behind the 3-point line by shooting 10 of 27 and walked away from this one shooting 9 of 13 at the free throw line (69.2%). In reference to rebounding, Alabama allowed LSU to pull down 41 in total (15 on the offensive side).

Jaden Shackelford ended up being a factor for the Crimson Tide for the matchup. He made 8 out of 19 in this game for a field goal percentage of 42.1%, and had 5 rebounds. Shackelford recorded 21 points in his 37 minutes on the hardwood and tallied 4 dimes in the game. Someone else that was pivotal for Alabama was Keon Ellis. He wrapped the game up with 1 assist in 25 mins on the court, and he knocked down 6 of 8 from the floor. Ellis ended up shooting 75.0% from the field and also totaling 14 points and 5 boards.

Who will win tonight's college basketball game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Alabama (-17)

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