Iowa Hawkeyes (18-14) vs Kansas State Wildcats (19-14)
Tuesday, March 19, 2024 at 9:00 pm
Iowa is a very strong home team and it gets to host this game in the First Round. K-State's defense is severely overrated as the shot quality numbers are not great and a potent Iowa offense should take advantage of that. K-State's turnover problems offensively are concerning in a true road game here. Iowa can put up 80+ against most opponents and I am not sure the Wildcats can keep up for 40 minutes without making extremely tough shots consistently. K-State is ranked 276th in three-point shooting, so I don't think that will be the case, and while Iowa's defense is not great on paper, I do think it is a bit better than what the efficiency numbers suggest. Give me Iowa in this one.
Ron’s Pick Iowa Hawkeyes: -5.5 -110
AUTHOR: Ron Romanelli
Ron is a part of the new breed of younger handicappers but Ron has many years of sports handicapping under his belt. Ron has a knack for seeing through the lines, consistently beating the books.