Will Ohio State Win Its First Road Game Of The Season?
We're Pulling For An Upset After Reviewing The Ohio State vs Iowa Odds

Friday night basketball isn’t known for having the best matchups. However, the Big Ten will feature an exciting game on FS1 between the Ohio State Buckeyes and Iowa Hawkeyes.
Neither of these teams has been hot recently. Ohio State has lost four of its last five, while the Hawkeyes have lost three of their previous four games.
Meanwhile, Iowa is 4-6 in Big Ten play, while Ohio State is just 3-7 in the conference. A win for Iowa would help push the Hawkeyes into the middle of the Big Ten. On the other hand, the Buckeyes could tie the Hawkeyes and build some momentum in February.
Currently, Iowa is the -5.5 favorite at home, with a total of 157.
Ohio State is currently 0-5 on the road this season, one of the many reasons Iowa’s the favorite.
Let’s talk about these Ohio State vs Iowa odds some more below.
Buckeyes vs Hawkeyes
Day/Time:
Location: Carver-Hawkeye Arena
Streaming: FS1
Ohio State vs Iowa Odds & Trends
While Ohio State is currently 13-8 on the season, the Buckeyes have only gone 8-13 against the spread this season. Meanwhile, the over has hit in 12 of the 21 games, but again, the Buckeyes haven’t won on the road this season.
Conversely, Iowa is 9-3 at home but has also struggled against the spread, covering in nine of 21 games. Still, like Ohio State, the Over has hit at a high rate of 67% for Iowa this NCAAB season.
Last year, on March 9, the Buckeyes added a 73-69 win on the road against Iowa as a four-point underdog.
Ohio State’s Media Is Talking Buyouts
It’s never good when the home media talks about a coach’s buyout.
Ohio State has always been a consistent member of the NCAA Tournament over the last few decades. They’ve been to 11 Final Fours in 40 years and demand success.
However, the Buckeyes are 13-8 and have only three wins in conference play this season. Therefore, many believe head coach Chris Holtmann is on the hot seat.
He’s got four more years remaining on his contract after signing a contract extension in 2022. In 2022, Ohio State went 20-12 and made it into the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
With his new contract, his annual average salary is $3.5 million. Therefore, if Holtmann is fired by April 1, 2024, he would be owed $15 million.
Ohio State could likely handle the $15 million. But would it truly be worth it? We’ll find out soon enough.
Does Iowa Have Momentum Despite Loss To Indiana?
The Iowa Hawkeyes lost to the Indiana Hoosiers in their latest Big Ten matchup, 74-68. The game ultimately looked out of reach until the Hawkeyes put together a massive second-half comeback.
However, the second-half comeback soon fell short, and the Hawkeyes lost to Indiana on the road.
In the final 1:26, Indiana went on an 8-0 run to escape Iowa at home. That proved to be the difference.
If Iowa doesn’t put themselves in such an early deficit, the Hawkeyes will be a tough out every night.
Holtmann’s Job Will Be Saved… For Now
It isn’t easy to win on the road in the Big Ten.
However, Ohio State Buckeyes have enough advantages to win this game outright over Iowa.
Typically, Iowa is a really good three-point shooting team that takes a lot of three-point attempts. However, this season, the Hawkeyes have scored just 24.5% of their points from downtown this season.
With Ohio State allowing opponents to shoot nearly 36% from downtown, the Buckeyes would be more than happy to give up only 25% of the points scored from three in this game.
The Buckeyes have held teams to 46.7% from inside the arc and are solid on the defensive glass, with teams averaging only 27.8% of offensive rebounds per game.
Iowa will do a solid job at limiting turnovers and usually shoot a solid rate from the foul line. However, Ohio State is also really good at limiting fouls called. That will keep Iowa from earning many points from the foul line in this game.
On the other hand, Ohio State doesn’t shoot a higher effective field goal percentage than Iowa. But the Buckeyes are still consistent and above average from the field. Ohio State has nailed 33.9% from three and 51% from inside the arc.
Inside the paint is where the Buckeyes have the main advantage. Iowa has allowed NCAAB teams to shoot 51.1% from inside the arc and has allowed more than 30% of offensive rebounds per game.
The Buckeyes have hauled in 33.6% of offensive rebounds throughout the year, proving they’ll be more active on the offensive glass and earn more second chances in this game.
It’s unlikely either of these teams make the NCAA Mach Madness college basketball rankings this season. But maybe the NIT is in the cards for their late March NCAA basketball schedule.
That said, Ohio State should add more second chances and should shoot a higher percentage from the field inside the arc. Therefore, I’ll take the road underdog with these NCAA basketball odds.
There’s not much to bet on college basketball. But there’s absolutely some value in the Ohio State vs Iowa odds. We’re on Ohio State +5.5 (-110).
For NCAAB betting news, odds analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.