The Iowa Hawkeyes take on the Creighton Bluejays. Check out our college basketball odds series for our Iowa Creighton prediction and pick. Find how to watch Iowa Creighton.

The Iowa Hawkeyes and Creighton Bluejays are both 2-0 on the season. Both teams have played and won two cupcake games against dramatically inferior opponents. This game in many ways represents the true start of the season.

Creighton came within an eyelash of making the Final Four last season. The Bluejays advanced to the Elite Eight and went down to the wire against San Diego State in the regional final before losing by one point. It was an excruciating, heartbreaking way for Creighton to fall short of its first-ever Final Four appearance. Creighton reached the Elite Eight for the first time since 1941, but coach Greg McDermott's team couldn't take the next step. This season, the Jays will try to score that one extra basket and compete on college basketball's biggest stage. The Jays are ranked in the top 10 and have the nucleus of a team which can do something special. The competition will be vigorous in the Big East with defending national champion UConn and defending Big East champion Marquette in the mix, but Creighton will have its chance to make a big national statement this season. Beating Iowa convincingly would get everything off to a strong start.

Iowa basketball under Fran McCaffery is a mixed bag. The good news is that Iowa very consistently makes the NCAA Tournament. That didn't always happen in the years before Fran arrived. The bad news is that Iowa hasn't been able to win a lot of games in the NCAA Tournament. Iowa still hasn't made the Sweet 16 this century. The Hawkeyes are still searching for a formula which will enable them to make a deeper run in March.

Here are the Iowa-Creighton College Basketball odds, courtesy of FanDuel.

College Basketball Odds: Iowa-Creighton Odds

Iowa Hawkeyes: +11.5 (-102)

Creighton Bluejays: -11.5 (-120)

Over: 164.5 (-110)

Under: 164.5 (-110)

How To Watch Iowa vs Creighton

Time: 10:00 pm ET / 7:00 pm PT

TV: Fox Sports 1

Stream: fuboTV (click for a free trial)*

Why Iowa Could Cover the Spread

The Creighton roster has a lot of really good players coming back this season, which is why the Jays are in the top 10 and are viewed as a team which can make a run to the Final Four. However, they are missing one particular piece: Arthur Kaluma, a very athletic and powerful 6-8 forward who could defend multiple spots on the floor, transferred to Kansas State in the offseason. Creighton still has a lot on its roster, but it's hardly inconsequential when a player with Kaluma's versatility, athleticism, strength, and overall upside leaves for another school. Creighton might need at least a little bit of an adjustment period without Kaluma. Iowa is a double-digit underdog. The Hawkeyes could lose by seven or eight points and still cover the spread. That seems more than reasonable in an early-season game in which teams are just trying to find their footing.

Why Creighton Could Cover the Spread

The Bluejays have a lot of the pieces they had last season, only now they are more experienced and cohesive. What makes the Jays especially tough to deal with, however, is big man Ryan Kalkbrenner, an elite big man defender, rebounder, and shot blocker. He makes things very easy for his teammates on defense. They can defend aggressively on the perimeter, knowing the big guy is there to deter shots at the rim. When Kalkbrenner got sick last season and missed several games, Creighton fell apart. Creighton with Kalkbrenner, however, is a top-tier team. We saw that in the 2023 NCAA Tournament.

Iowa is not a strong defensive team. It rarely has been under McCaffery. Creighton has a strong defense but will be able to score enough to cover the spread.

Final Iowa-Creighton Prediction & Pick

This is a decent Iowa team against a very, very strong Creighton team on Creighton's home floor. The the Bluejays here.

Final Iowa-Creighton Prediction & Pick: Creighton -11.5