Iowa vs. Maryland Prediction and Odds (Betting Preview for Big Ten Matchup)

Iowa hits the road on Thursday night in hopes of notching a Big Ten road victory against a struggling Maryland team.

The season has been far from what was expected for the Terps, who saw their head coach Mark Turgeon leave the program earlier this season and the team's transfer acquisitions struggle.

The team has been frisky at home though, nearly knocking off a ranked Michigan State squad last week, and they will look to beat another Big Ten contender in Iowa on Thursday.

Here are the odds from WynnBET Sportsbook:

Iowa vs. Maryland Odds, Spread and Total

Spread:

• Iowa: -3.5 (-110)
• Maryland: +3.5 (-110)

Moneyline

• Iowa: -170
• Maryland: +140

Total: 146 (Over -110/Under -110)

Iowa vs. Maryland Prediction and Pick

It's tough to win on the road in conference play, as evident over the past few weeks for Iowa, who has dropped a pair of games to Big Ten basement dwellers Rutgers and Penn State, and the Hawkeyes may have some road struggles yet again facing Maryland.

Iowa has struggled on the defensive glass, worst in conference play, and foul at an alarming rate. Opponents are going to the charity stipe at the second highest rate in Big Ten play and the Terps generate more than 20% of their points from there, most in the Big Ten. The team is second in the league in free throw rate and shoot 74% from the line.

If Maryland can rack up fouls and get into the bonus early we can see this game stay close and slow down Iowa's up-tempo offense. The Hawkeyes play at the 57th fastest tempo in the country, per KenPom and have the second best turnover rate in the country. Despite having a ton of shot making on the perimeter, the Hawkeyes are posting the 13th best 3-point percentage in Big Ten play.

The team has been in a funk on the offensive side of the ball, but I see this as a good opportunity to get on track against a Maryland team that is bottom 30 nationally in turnover rate. For its struggles in conference games, Iowa is still 13th in ShotQuality's adjusted offense metric.

I'm not interested in the side, but I do like the total quite a bit. I believe Maryland can make this game a free throw battle and hang around while Iowa is going to push the pace and get back on track offensively against a middling Maryland defense. There should be plenty of possessions in this one with Iowa's fast pace, giving us more chances at this over.

For reference, the first game at Iowa featured 155 points despite a combined 22-of-39 free throw performance from the two sides. That total closed 151.5 in that Jan. 3 meeting, and this number is overreacting to Iowa's slipping offensive numbers.

PICK: OVER 146, play to 148.5

All of Reed's college basketball plays can be tracked here, his best bets column for college basketball is 55-46-3 for +6.7 units.