Michigan State Spartans vs Iowa Hawkeyes Prediction, 3/6/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Michigan State Spartans vs Iowa Hawkeyes

Date: Thursday, March 6, 2025

Location: Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Bowling Green, OH

TV: FS1

The Iowa Hawkeyes (15-14) will try to beat the Michigan State Spartans (24-5) at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Thursday.

The Michigan State Spartans faced off with Wisconsin and walked away with a win by a score of 71-62 in their last contest. In regard to personal fouls, the Spartans ended up finishing with 17 and Wisconsin had 15 personal fouls. They knocked down 5 of their 32 attempts from downtown. Wisconsin finished 81.3% at the charity stripe by making 13 of their 16 shots. Moreover, Wisconsin totaled 38 boards (6 offensive, 32 defensive), but wasn't able to put a block in the stat sheet. Wisconsin earned 9 assists and had 3 steals in the matchup. Concerning the defense, Michigan State allowed the other team to go 33.8% from the floor on 22 out of 65 shooting. They also doled out 20 dimes for the matchup in addition to creating 9 turnovers and earning 4 steals. In reference to hauling in rebounds, they compiled 49 with 11 of them being on the offensive end. From the free throw line, the Spartans knocked down 6 of their 13 attempts for a percentage of 46.2%. Michigan State ended the game with a 39.4% FG percentage (28 of 71) and made 9 out of their 27 3-pointers.

Jaden Akins is a player who was a major factor in this matchup. He left the arena with 19 points on 6 of 18 shooting. He saw the court for 31 mins played and pulled down 8 boards. He finished the contest at 33.3% from the field and also earned 1 assist.

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Michigan State heads into this game with a record of 24-5 for the season. They lose possession via turnover 11.7 times per contest and as a group they commit 16.9 personal fouls per game. As a unit, Michigan State is grabbing 40.2 rebounds per game and is sitting with 499 dimes so far this season, which ranks 27th in college hoops in terms of passing the ball. The Spartans are connecting on 29.7% on shots from distance (165 of 555) and 79.3% from the charity stripe. They currently have an average of 78.0 pts per contest (80th in college) while hitting 46.2% from the floor.

On the defensive end, the Spartans have forced 11.4 turnovers on a nightly basis while drawing 19.1 fouls. They are relinquishing 28.2% from beyond the arc and they are 43rd in the country in points per game allowed (66.6). The Spartans are allowing and opponent field goal percentage of 39.9% (674 of 1,690) and they relinquish 30.6 rebounds per game as a unit. They rank 81st in college in giving up assists to the opposition with 359 surrendered for the year.

When they last stepped on the court, the Iowa Hawkeyes took a loss by a final score of 68-57 when they played Northwestern. In the matter of how they rebounded, Iowa permitted Northwestern to grab 38 in all (9 on the offensive side). They went 39.1% from downtown by going 9 out of 23 and finished the contest at 15 of 23 at the free throw line (65.2%). The Hawkeyes allowed Northwestern to make 22 of their 52 attempts from the floor which had them shooting 42.3% in this game. In all, the Hawkeyes went 21 out of 58 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 36.2%. In reference to 3-pointers, Iowa buried 8 out of their 25 tries (32.0%). They were able to bury 7 of the free throw attempts for a rate of 70.0%. Northwestern earned 15 fouls in this matchup which took the Hawkeyes to the free throw line for a total of 10 attempts. They also turned the ball over 6 times, while getting 4 steals for this contest. The Hawkeyes were able to pull down 23 defensive rebounds and 6 offensive rebounds totaling 29 for the contest.

Drew Thelwell was important for the Hawkeyes for this contest. He knocked down 5 of 7 for the game for a field goal rate of 71.4%, and earned 1 rebound. He recorded 14 points in his 33 minutes on the court and had 3 dimes in the matchup.

Iowa has a win-loss mark of 15-14 for the campaign. As an offensive unit, the Hawkeyes are hitting on 48.6% from the field, which ranks them 22nd in the country. Iowa has scored 2,384 pts so far this year (82.2 per contest) and they pull in 32.0 boards per game. They are assisting teammates 18.3 times per contest (4th in college hoops) and they are turning it over 10.1 times per contest. The Hawkeyes commit 15.0 fouls per contest and they connect on 70.5% from the free throw line.

The Iowa defense allows 34.9% on 3-point attempts (241 of 691) and their opponents are connecting on 69.5% of their shots from the charity stripe. They have surrendered 16.1 dimes and 37.0 total rebounds per game, ranking them 351st and 312th in those categories. The Hawkeyes are ranked 340th in Division 1 in points allowed per game with 79.1. They are able to force 13.4 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 48.0% from the floor (354th in college hoops).

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Iowa

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