The Mount St Mary Mountaineers take on the Iona Gaels. Check out our college basketball odds series for our Mount St Mary Iona prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Mount St Mary Iona.
The college basketball season has been a zig-zagging journey filled with a lot of unexpected plot twists, and the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference has been part of that larger story. Entering this season, all eyes were fixed on the Iona Gaels as the favorite in the MAAC, and why would anyone doubt that point? Rick Pitino is an elite college basketball coach. Say what else you want about him, relative to his off-the-court scandals and embarrassments. On the court, between the painted white lines, Pitino is as good as it gets in college basketball coaching. He won national championships at two different schools. He has one of the best Sweet 16 records of any coach in college basketball history with a minimum of 10 appearances in that round of the NCAA Tournament. He coached Iona to big nonconference wins last season and has an NCAA appearance with Iona. Pitino’s credentials make Iona a top-of-mind contender for the MAAC title as long as he’s on the job. Yet, this season hasn’t gone as expected or hoped. Injuries have been a problem, but even then, it’s jarring to note that Iona has lost by 17 to Siena and is third in the conference behind Siena and second-place Rider, which also defeated Pitino’s Gaels. Iona has no margin for error in its attempt to win the MAAC regular season title.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Mount St Mary-Iona College Basketball odds.
College Basketball Odds: Mount St Mary-Iona Odds
Mount St Mary Mountaineers: +15.5 (-102)
Iona Gaels: -15.5 (-120)
Over: 134.5 (-110)
Under: 134.5 (-110)
How To Watch Mount St Mary vs. Iona
TV: ESPN3
Stream: ESPN+/ESPN3
Time: 5:00 p.m. ET, 2:00 p.m. PT
*Watch Mount St Mary-Iona LIVE with fuboTV (Click for free trial)*
Why Mount St Mary Could Cover the Spread
The Iona Gaels simply haven’t hit the sweet spot this season. They haven’t gotten into a rhythm and retained it. Usually, Pitino-coached teams arrive at a point where they roll out 10 players onto the floor, overwhelming opponents with full-court pressure, depth, athleticism, and energy. Pitino’s teams maintain this winning identity for weeks at a time. That really hasn’t been Iona’s reality this season. The Gaels seem to labor for nearly every win they get. They fell behind Quinnipiac 19-4 this past Sunday before rallying to win. The comeback was impressive, but the larger takeaway is that Iona has a hard time putting together complete 40-minute games this season. That dimension of Iona’s season makes it easier to pick Mount St. Mary’s against the very large spread.
Why Iona Could Cover the Spread
The Mount St. Mary’s Mountaineers just aren’t a very good team. Let’s not overcomplicate this. MSM is 7-15 overall, 3-8 in the MAAC. The Mountaineers are 1-4 in their last five games, and four of those games were at home. The one road game was a 15-point loss at Siena. Given that Iona is extremely motivated to get back into the hunt in the conference race, the Gaels should bring enough urgency to the court to win this game by 20 or more points. They can certainly blow the doors off Mount St. Mary’s in this contest.
Final Mount St Mary-Iona Prediction & Pick
You could stay away from this game, but if you insist on a pick, Iona probably has enough to win this game big, if only because the Gaels know this is an urgent moment in their season and will therefore be focused and sharp.
Final Mount St Mary-Iona Prediction & Pick: Iona -15.5