In their Phil Knight Invitational matchup against the North Carolina Tar Heels on Friday night, the Iowa State Cyclones, who are 4-0 in the Big-12 conference, will be attempting to upset the nation's top-ranked team.
After defeating Villanova 81-79 despite being 1.5-point favorites, the Cyclones are currently 2-0. Following a 15-point victory over Portland, the Tar Heels defeated that team 89–81. North Carolina is 3-1 in games against Iowa State.
North Carolina vs Iowa State Betting Odds
Up to $500 in Free Bets with BetRivers Sportsbook
North Carolina vs Iowa State Match Details
Fixture: Tar Heels vs Cyclones
Date and Time: Friday, November 25 at 5:00 PM ET
Venue: Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Portland, Oregon
North Carolina vs Iowa State Key Stats
With 78.7 points per game, the Cyclones are doing well. In their most recent game, they converted 45.5% of their field goal attempts into points and 28.6% of their 3-point attempts into points, totaling 81 points. The Cyclones' top scorer for the team, Gabe Kalscheur, scored 23 points with four assists and three rebounds to his name.
Robert Jones scored 10 points and grabbed five rebounds, while Osun Osunniyi contributed 17 points, five rebounds, and three assists. Despite allowing 45 points per game, the Cyclones' defense has been strong. They lost their previous game by a score of 79 points, so they will have to perform better to prevail.
The Tar Heels won their last contest and went to the top of the ACC. Caleb Love and Pete Nance led the scoring charts for the unit. Love scored 23 points and had four assists, while Nance scored 28 points and raked in seven rebounds in the Tar Heels' win. They shot a whopping 53% field-goal percentage and 625 from the line.
The Tar Heels are struggling defensively despite the fact that they are managing to win their games. They are giving up 70.6 points on average on 40.8% shooting against their opponents.
They are a force to be reckoned with on the offensive end, as four of their five starters are averaging more than 14 points per game this season. They have significantly improved their field goal percentage but are still struggling with their three-point percentage.
North Carolina vs Iowa State Betting Prediction
With three of their four games ending in 80 points or more, the Cyclones have been doing well on the offensive end. They have struggled to make long-range shots and aren't as proficient at the FT line as the Tar Heels.
They do a good job of rebounding the ball, and that aspect might come in handy for them to stay alive in the contest, but they are up against a North Carolina defense that held four of their five opponents to fewer than 70 points, so it will be difficult for them to keep up with the Tar Heels. Take the Tar Heels to cover the spread.
Pick: Tar Heels -5.5 (-115)
Up to $500 in Free Bets with BetRivers Sportsbook