Creighton Blue Jays vs. Iowa Hawkeyes
Sunday, 11/20/11, 4:00 PM EST, TV: N/A
Opening Point Spread: Iowa -2
Current Betting Line: Iowa -2.5
Opening Total: 142
Current Total: 142
Odds Courtesy of Bookmaker
Creighton continues play in the Dale Howard Classic with a neutral-site game against the Iowa Hawkeyes, as both teams come into the contest with a perfect 3-0 record. Sunday’s game will be played inside the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa. The Blue Jays are led by forward Doug McDermott, who is averaging 20.3 points and 6.3 rebounds per game, coming in as one of 50 candidates for the Wooden and Naismith Awards. He was the first freshman named to the first-team Missouri Valley Conference since the 1951-52 campaign. Creighton is 2-5 ATS on neutral courts the last two-plus years.
The Blue Jays return 10 lettermen and three starters from last year’s 23-16 team, while all four newcomers that have seen action have scored in double-figures in at least one game. Creighton certainly hasn’t been dominated in this series historically, posting a 10-14 record, with the last meeting coming in 2001. Since 2000, Creighton has played just five games against Big Ten Conference teams, with three of those coming against nationally-ranked opponents.
Iowa has five men scoring in double-figures and returned four starters from last year’s team that finished 11-20 on the season. “I think we have improved a lot,” commented Hawkeyes head coach Fran McCaffery. The Hawkeyes have won three consecutive games for the first time since December 2008, while being in the lead or tied in all but 1:08 this season. The team is coming off an impressive 88-55 win over Northern Illinois as 23-point favorites, shooting 62 percent from beyond the arc. Iowa is 4-9 ATS in November the last two-plus years.
The Hawkeyes certainly like to shoot from three-point land, hitting 31 triples in the first three games. Iowa’s bench has also been a major contributor during the start of the season, averaging 40.3 points in the first three games. Guard Matt Gatens leads all scorers in averaging 16.3 points per game, shooting 61.5 percent from the field. He joins Bryce Cartwright to make the most experienced starting backcourt tandem in the Big Ten Conference.
Bettors will likely back the Blue Jays due to their 21-5 ATS mark on Sundays, while the Hawkeyes are 4-11 ATS versus the MVC.
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