By Stephen Nover
Rutgers plus 8 1/2 at Iowa
Rutgers has covered five in a row and is not outclassed here like this point spread may indicate.
Iowa is 1-2 in its last three games. The Hawkeyes lost to Maryland, 66-65, at home, got past Indiana, 76-70, in overtime at home and was blown out on the road by Ohio State, 90-70, in its last game. Hawkeyes coach Fran McCaffery was suspended two games following that loss to the Buckeyes for cursing out one of the officials after the game.
The Scarlet Knights have made strides this season. No, they can’t hang with the big boys of the Big Ten. But they are good enough to stay around the middle tier teams of the conference such as Iowa. They proved that in the first meeting on Feb. 16. It took a desperation 3-point basket at the buzzer for the Hawkeyes to escape with a 71-69 victory.
So Rutgers is in revenge mode and is playing well. The Scarlet Knights have been good in this role covering nine of the last 13 times versus opponents sporting a winning home mark. They have covered in four of their last five road games. Iowa is 2-6 ATS the past eight times it has hosted sub .500 road teams. This has been a ‘dog series, too, with the favorite failing to cover the last five times.
(Editor’s note: Stephen Nover is having huge seasons in every sport – NBA, NHL and CBB – he is doing right now, including winning 64 percent of his past 43 premium college basketball plays. If you are interested in Stephen’s sports service please email him at scriber26@gmail.com or message him via Twitter.)
