Utah Utes vs Iowa State Cyclones Prediction, 1/7/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Utah Utes vs Iowa State Cyclones

Date: Tuesday, January 7, 2025

Location: Hilton Coliseum in Ames, IA

TV: ESPN+

The Iowa State Cyclones (12-1) will take on the Utah Utes (8-5) at Hilton Coliseum on Tuesday.

The Utah Utes played Texas Tech and ended up losing by a score of 93-65 in their last game. Regarding fouls, the Utes ended up with 15 and Texas Tech accounted for 19 fouls. They also converted 12 of 26 shots from 3-point land. Texas Tech shot 72.2% at the free throw line by making 13 of 18 attempts. Moreover, Texas Tech grabbed 27 boards (8 offensive, 19 defensive), but wasn't able to record a rejection. Texas Tech distributed 22 assists and had 7 steals in this contest. With respect to defense, Utah allowed the other team to go 58.6% from the field on 34 out of 58 shooting. They also distributed 15 dimes in this game in addition to forcing 4 turnovers and having 2 steals. Regarding hauling in rebounds, they earned a total of 27 with 13 of them being of the offensive variety. From the free throw line, the Utes buried 15 of their 26 shots for a percentage of 57.7%. Utah walked away from the contest having earned a 42.3% FG percentage (22 of 52) and converted 6 of their 23 three-point shots.

Zach Keller is one player who came through for the matchup. He ended up finishing with 12 points on 6 out of 7 shooting. He was on the court for 17 mins and grabbed 2 rebounds. He finished 85.7% from the field and also totaled 1 assist.

Get all of our NCAA Expert Picks

Utah enters this one with a mark of 8-5 for the year. They are averaging 82.7 points per outing (43rd in Division 1) while shooting 47.1% from the field. The Utes are connecting on 35.9% on shots from beyond the arc (133 of 370) and 63.3% from the charity stripe. As a unit, Utah is snagging 40.4 boards per contest and has totaled 266 assists for the year, which has them ranked 17th in the nation in terms of passing. They lose possession by turning the ball over 11.2 times per game and as a team they are committing 17.3 fouls per contest.

When they are on defense, the Utes are forcing their opponents into 12.8 turnovers every game and they draw 18.0 personal fouls. They are 68th in college in allowing assists to the opposition with 165 surrendered for the year. Utes defense is giving up a field goal percentage of 40.3% (314 of 780) and they surrender 34.4 rebounds per game as a squad. They are conceding 32.8% from beyond the arc and they are 147th in college hoops in PPG from their opponents (69.9).

In their last game, the Iowa State Cyclones went home victorious with a score of 74-55 when they played Baylor. The Cyclones earned 34 defensive boards and 7 offensive rebounds totaling 41 for the game. They turned it over 12 times, while recording 6 steals for this game. Baylor committed 16 personal fouls in this contest which got the Cyclones to the charity stripe for a total of 24 attempts. They were able to convert 16 of the free throw attempts for a percentage of 66.7%. With respect to shooting from downtown, Iowa State made 10 of 21 attempts (47.6%). When the final whistle was blown, the Cyclones shot 24 out of 49 from the floor which gave them a percentage of 49.0%. The Cyclones allowed Baylor to bury 19 out of 64 tries from the field which had them sitting at 29.7% in the matchup. They finished 24.1% from distance by going 7 of 29 and finished the contest at 10 of 14 from the charity stripe (71.4%). When it comes to team rebounding, Iowa State permitted Baylor to grab 33 in all (12 on the offensive glass).

Keshon Gilbert ended up having an impact for the Cyclones for this game. He converted 5 of 10 in this matchup for a rate of 50.0%, and accounted for 10 rebounds. He recorded 16 points in his 36 mins of playing time and accumulated 5 dimes for this contest.

Iowa State has a mark of 12-1 so far this season. The Cyclones are responsible for committing 14.5 fouls per contest and they go 75.2% from the charity stripe. They are dishing out assists 17.5 times per contest (24th in the country) and they turn it over 9.7 times per game. Iowa State has tallied 1,126 pts on the season (86.6 per game) and they pull down 37.2 boards per contest. On the offensive side of the ball, the Cyclones are hitting on 50.4% from the floor, which ranks 11th in the country.

The Cyclones on defense are ranked 45th in college in points per game surrendered with 65.0. They are able to force 15.6 turnovers on a nightly basis and allow teams to shoot 40.9% from the floor (78th in the country). The Iowa State defense gives up 31.8% on shots from beyond the arc (95 of 299) and their opposition makes 75.4% of their shots from the free throw line. They concede 13.0 dimes and 30.7 boards every game, which ranks 190th and 24th in college hoops.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Utah

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here