Iowa State Cyclones vs Baylor Bears Prediction, 3/5/2022 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Iowa State Cyclones vs Baylor Bears

Date: Saturday, March 5, 2022

Location: Ferrell Center in Waco, TX

TV: ESPN2

Ferrell Center is where the Baylor Bears (25-5) will meet the Iowa State Cyclones (20-10) on Saturday.

The Iowa State Cyclones stepped onto the hardwood against Oklahoma State and went home with a loss by a final score of 53-36 in their last contest. Iowa State finished the contest having earned a 28.3% field goal percentage (15 out of 53) and knocked down 2 out of their 17 shots from beyond the perimeter. At the charity stripe, the Cyclones knocked down 4 of their 10 attempts for a percentage of 40.0%. When it comes to rebounding, they collected a total of 24 with 8 of them being of the offensive variety. They also dished out 10 dimes in this contest in addition to forcing 20 turnovers and getting 12 steals. When talking about defending, Iowa State allowed their opponent to shoot 44.2% from the field on 23 of 52 shooting. Oklahoma State distributed 11 assists and had 10 steals in this game. Additionally, Oklahoma State collected 37 rebounds (11 offensive, 26 defensive), but finished the game with no rejections. Oklahoma State finished the contest at 57.1% from the charity stripe by making 4 of 7 shots. They converted 3 of their 15 tries from 3-point land. In regard to fouls, the Cyclones walked away with 15 and Oklahoma State accounted for 14 fouls.

Tyrese Hunter is one player who played a role in the matchup. He finished the contest at 33.3% from the field and also earned 3 assists. He was on the hardwood for 37 minutes played and also snagged 2 rebounds. He walked away with 12 points on 5 of 15 shooting.

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Iowa State comes into this game with a record of 20-10 for the season. They turn it over 13.7 times per game and as a group they commit 18.0 personal fouls per game. As a team, Iowa State is pulling in 32.4 boards per game and has accumulated 438 dimes this year, which is 66th in the nation in terms of passing. The Cyclones are hitting 32.8% on three-point shots (203 of 619) and 68.5% from the charity stripe. They average 67.3 points per outing (274th in Division 1) while hitting 44.1% from the field.

Defensively, the Cyclones have forced 16.9 turnovers per game while drawing 17.7 personal fouls. They are 114th in Division 1 in allowing assists to their opponents with 340 conceded for the season. The Cyclones defense is allowing and opponent field goal percentage of 42.4% (649 of 1,530) and they surrender 32.6 boards per game as a team. They concede 29.4% on 3-pointers and they are 21st in college hoops in PPG allowed (62.3).

When they last stepped on the hardwood, the Baylor Bears went home victorious with a score of 68-61 when they faced Texas. When discussing how they rebounded, Baylor allowed Texas to get 34 in total (11 on the offensive glass). They went 17.4% from 3-point land by connecting on 4 of 23 and finished the game at 9 of 15 at the free throw line (60.0%). The Bears allowed Texas to knock down 24 of 60 attempts from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 40.0% in this contest. In all, the Bears finished shooting 22 for 54 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 40.7%. When talking about shooting from 3-point land, Baylor converted 9 of their 22 tries (40.9%). They were able to make 15 of them for a rate of 75.0%. Texas committed 18 personal fouls for this contest which got the Bears to the free throw line for a total of 20 attempts. They turned it over 11 times, while getting 5 steals in this contest. The Bears were able to collect 23 defensive boards and 8 offensive rebounds for a total of 31 in this matchup.

James Akinjo ended up being a major contributor for the Bears in this contest. He made 6 of 14 in this game giving him a field goal percentage of 42.9%, and had 8 rebounds. He tallied 19 points in his 38 mins of playing time and accumulated 7 assists in the game.

Baylor has a win-loss record of 25-5 for the campaign. The Bears commit 16.0 personal fouls every game and they connect on 69.8% from the charity stripe. They are assisting teammates 16.1 times per game (23rd in college basketball) and they turn it over 12.8 times per contest. Baylor has tallied 2,306 points on the season (76.9 per game) and they pull in 37.2 boards per game. On the offensive side of the court, the Bears are connecting on 46.6% from the floor, which ranks them 49th in the country.

The Baylor defense allows 29.2% from downtown (173 of 592) and their opponents are converting on 69.9% of their shots from the charity stripe. They concede 12.6 assists and 32.1 rebounds on a nightly basis, which ranks them 183rd and 65th in college hoops. The Bears on defense are ranked 31st in college hoops in points given up per game with 63.2. They are forcing 15.9 turnovers per game and have allowed teams to shoot 42.0% from the field (115th in the country).

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Iowa State

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