Top March Madness sportsbooks favor Iowa over Richmond. The 12-seed Spiders and 5-seed Hawkeyes will clash at the KeyBank Center this Thursday in the opening round of the NCAA Championship – Midwest Region.
Richmond Spiders vs. Iowa Hawkeyes Odds by BetOnline
| Team | SP/RL | TOTAL | ML | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Richmond | +10½ ( -110 ) | 150½ ( -110 ) | +425 |  |
| Iowa | -10½ ( -110 ) | 150½ ( -110 ) | -550 | |
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Betting Richmond Spiders
The Richmond Spiders are underdogs at the best online sportsbooks. They finished the regular season with a 23-12 record and were able to earn their ticket to the NCAA Championship. They won the Atlantic 10 Tournament when they upset the Davidson Wildcats 64-62.
Richmond was seeded 6th in the Atlantic 10 Tournament. They went 10-8 in conference play, but the Spiders were remarkable throughout the Tournament. They were able to earn the automatic bid after they defeated VCU, Dayton, and Davidson.
Richmond had a hard time during conference play in the regular season. They still have a lot of quality wins this season, though, including wins over Hofstra, Northern Iowa, Toledo, Dayton, and Davidson. Richmond averages 71.9 points per game on 44.4% field goal shooting.
The Spiders are averaging 8.2 three-point shots per game on 33.8% three-point shooting. Tyler Burton leads the team with 16.3 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 1.0 apg, and 1.1 spg. Grant Golden has 14.3 ppg, 6.2 rpg, and 2.9 apg. Jacob Gilyard posts 12.9 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 5.5 apg, and 3.1 apg). Nathan Cayo addes 8.7 ppg, 4.3 rpg, and 1.8 apg. Richmond allows 71.9 points per game on 44.4% field goal shooting.
Betting Iowa Hawkeyes
The Iowa Hawkeyes are favored by top sportsbooks. They finished their regular season with a 26-9 record. Also they earned their NCAA Championship berth after they won the Big Ten Championship. They defeated Purdue Boilermakers 75-66.
Iowa received the 5-seed for the Big Ten Championship with a 12-8 conference record. However, the Hawkeyes secured the Big Ten Championship when they defeated Northwestern, Rutgers, Indiana, and Purdue.
Iowa didn’t get many key wins in their non-conference schedule. Their best winning came against Virginia. The Hawkeyes played decently in Big Ten regular season. They picked up wins over Indiana, Ohio State, Michigan State, and Michigan.
Iowa averages 84.0 ppg on 46.5% field goal shooting. The Hawkeyes average 9.3 three-point shots per game on 37.1% three-point shooting. Iowa is led by Keegan Murray with 23.7 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 1.4 apg, and 1.3 spg, Jordan Bohannon with 11.2 ppg, 1.3 rpg, and 1.8 apg, Patrick McCaffery with 10.4 ppg, 3.6 rpg, and 1.6 apg, and Kris Murray with 10.0 ppg, 4.3 rpg, and 1.0 apg. Iowa allowings their 71.4 points per game on 43.8% field goal shooting.
Richmond Spiders vs. Iowa Hawkeyes Pick
According to top sportsbooks, the Spiders are 4-1 ATS in their last five neutral site games, but just 1-4 ATS in their last five Thursday games. The Hawkeyes are 6-1 ATS in their last seven games overall and 4-1 ATS in their last five games after an ATS win.
Iowa’s offense ranks fourth in scoring, 50th in field goal percentage, and 24th in three-point shots made per game. On the other hand, the Hawkeyes have struggled on defense. They head into this matchup ranked 239th in scoring defense and 204th in defensive field goal percentage.
Richmond went on a tear in the A-10 Tournament to earn an NCAA bid. They surely have an explosive offensive arsenal weapons. This is just a tough matchup for the Spiders. Iowa has one of the top offensives in the country. The Hawkeyes have thrived when playing on a neutral court this season, with a 5-0 record. Iowa has enough firepower to win the game outright as well as cover the point spread.
