On the second day of March Madness, the Iowa State Cyclones will go head-to-head with the LSU Tigers in a Friday night showdown. Remember to check out our March Madness odds series, which includes not only some of the best betting content you can find anywhere but also our Iowa State-LSU prediction and pick. Get ready for the most magical time of the year!
The Cyclones fall product to an extremely competitive Big 12 Conference, where ISU played a whopping 11 teams ranked within the AP Top 25, going 4-7 in those matchups. After starting the 2021-2022 campaign on an absolute tear starting 12-0, Iowa State has struggled mightily of late, dropping their last three including a 31-point humiliating loss at the hands of Texas Tech in the Big 12 Quarterfinals. Even though the Cyclones have been rather inconsistent for most of the season, they still have the capability to give teams trouble. ISU's overall record sits at 20-12 (7-11), good for seventh among the Big 12 standings.
The six-seeded Tigers of LSU enter their first-round matchup with much anticipation and lofty aspirations. LSU oftentimes plays with a sense of recklessness, but they are a team that quickly moves on from its mistakes and can defend anyone anywhere. The aggressive Tigers compiled a record of 3-5 against ranked foes and were recently eliminated by Arkansas in the SEC Tournament. LSU has also faced quite the dramatic past week, as head coach Will Wade was fired shortly after their conference tournament loss due to allegations of misconduct. The school in purple and gold will no doubt have an uphill climb in losing its 39-year old coach moments before the opening tip of the NCAA Tournament, as they will have to adjust accordingly after the gut-punching news. LSU went 22-11 (9-9) in their regular-season slate, finishing 5th in the SEC.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Iowa State-LSU odds:
March Madness Odds: Iowa State-LSU Odds
Iowa State: +4 (-110)
LSU: -4 (-110)
Over: 128.5 (-110)
Under: 128.5 (-110)
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Why Iowa State Could Cover the Spread
Coming into Friday, there aren't many teams throughout the country reeling as poorly as Iowa State entering the tournament. However, it's a brand new season, and Iowa State matches up well against an inexperienced Tigers bunch that have little carry-over from last year's team. The Cyclones put the clamps on schools defensively, striving in their ability to defend on the perimeter while also causing chaos by forcing turnovers at a high rate. This is also the same group of ballers that defeated arch-rival Iowa by 20 points on Dec. 9th of last year and played Kansas and Baylor tough in both of their meetings against the top two schools in the Big 12.
If Iowa State has any chance of covering the spread, they will need to get off to a fast start against an equally hit-or-miss Tigers squad. Additionally, it will be dyer for the Cyclones to generate offense and hit open looks when they get them. Look no further than Izaiah Brockington, who is a senior transfer from Penn State and has hands down been ISU's go-to man scoring wise. Plus, losing your head coach days before the tournament begins isn't beneficial for any team whatsoever, so expect the Cyclones to have the X's and O's edge over the Tigers in that department. Iowa State is 2-5 ATS when paired against teams with a winning percentage above .600.
Why LSU Could Cover the Spread
The Tigers have indeed faced their fair share of tribulations, but oftentimes it's the players out on the floor that have the most say in the outcome of a big-time matchup. In this case, LSU's roster is one of the youngest that the NCAA tournament has to offer, and it shows in their high turnover rate and often struggles in their field goal percentage. However, the young guns from Baton Rouge make up for their lack of experience by being elite defensively, similar to that of Iowa State. Both of these teams are similar in a lot of how they play the game, but the biggest difference-maker in LSU covering the spread will come down to second-chance points and crashing the offensive glass.
The Tigers excel in this statistic, and this trend should continue Friday evening, especially matched up with a smaller Cyclones team. The most important factor for the Tigers to help boost their chances in reaching the Round of 32 will be the continued stellar play of sophomore forward Tari Eason, who is putting together quite the productive season by averaging 16.9 PPG and knocking down a spectacular 52% of his shots
Final Iowa State-LSU Prediction & Pick
It is hard to imagine that the sudden loss of Will Wade won't be a factor heading into this six-seed versus eleven-seeded throw down, so who among the young Tigers will step up and provide much-needed leadership during the most important time of the year? It remains to be seen, and Iowa State should capitalize on LSU not being on the same page early, forcing turnovers and swarming the LSU attack at a deranged level of pace. This should be a battle, but LSU is just too inexperienced to afford losing their coach against a solid Cyclone group. Iowa State prevails!
Final Iowa State-LSU Prediction & Pick: Iowa State +4 (-110)
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