The Richmond Spiders (23-12, 10-8 Atlantic Ten) rolled to an exciting win in the Atlantic 10 Tournament, turning what would have been a season without a tournament into a trip to the Big Dance. The selection committee granted the Spiders a 12-seed, pitting them against 5-seed Iowa (26-9, 12-8 Big Ten), the Big Ten champions. The 5-12 matchup is one that frequently leads to upsets – but not frequently enough to choose more than one or two of them in any bracket. With that said, we’re going to break down this matchup and see what your best March Madness betting choices are.
NCAA Basketball Preview: Iowa vs Richmond (Thursday, March 17)
When: Thursday, March 17, 2022, 3:10 pm ET
Where: KeyBank Center, Buffalo, NY
TV: truTV
Radio: No National Broadcast
Live Stream: Sling TV
NCAAB Odds: Iowa -10.5
Why should you bet on the Spiders?
Richmond has pulled off shockers in the past; in 1991, the Spiders were a 15-seed and knocked off 2-seed Syracuse in the first round. In 2011, Richmond made it to the Sweet Sixteen – but they have not made it to the Big Dance since. Of course, neither of those games factors in this matchup, but that sort of history can make it into the minds of sports bettors – and players and coaches. When you note that Iowa has never made it out of the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament under Fran McCaffery, then the drumbeat of history gets just a little bit louder, and it does not take much to add emotional pressure in this tournament.
Junior forward Tyler Burton, who averaged 16.3 points and 7.7 rebounds per game, is the Spiders’ top player. Richmond is more of a plodding team that likes to do its scoring in the halfcourt, and they don’t jack up threes at the rate that Iowa does. The Spiders will have to push themselves offensively to hang with the Hawkeyes, an effort that may take them enough out of their comfort zone for Iowa to win.
Why should you put your money on the Hawkeyes?
Iowa is the fourth most efficient team on offense in all of college basketball. They averaged 83.8 points per game and hung 112 on Northwestern in the Big Ten Tournament – in a game that did not involve overtime. The Hawkeyes have become NCAA Tournament regulars under head coach Fran McCaffery, making six appearances in the last nine years, and their win in the Big Ten Tournament was a major milestone, the first time the Hawkeyes had pulled that off in 16 years.
The Hawkeyes were ninth in the nation from behind the three-point arc, and they upped their average to 87.5 in the Big Ten Tournament thanks in large part to that rout of Northwestern. So the team is scoring in bunches, but if they go cold from downtown in a new arena, things could get ugly in a hurry. Their top players include sophomore forwards Keegan and Kris Murray. Keegan averages 23.6 points, 8.6 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game, while Kriss puts up 9.9 points and 4.2 boards per game. Did we mention that they are twins?
Final Score and Prediction
I see Iowa coming out of the gate a little bit cold on the shooting end, as their nerves and expectations – and the experience of playing in a different arena – take some adjustment. They should warm up over the course of the game, but Richmond could hang tough and slow the game down. I like Iowa to advance – but I like Richmond to cover in a 76-68 Hawkeye win.
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