Drake vs. Iowa State basketball: Cyclones heavy favorites over two-win Bulldogs
By Brian Spaen
A few offshore sportsbooks have already opened up Iowa State basketball as a heavy favorite against Drake on Saturday, and those lines are climbing rapidly.
Opening as a 16.5-point favorite, the Cyclones are already an 18-point favorite on two offshore betting websites as of early Friday evening. We could see that line climb past the 20-point margin. ISU is starting to rise with five straight victories, but Drake, despite getting a victory early this week, is struggling.
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The Bulldogs moved to 2-8 after defeating Jackson State, 76-66, on Monday. Jackson State was also 1-8 when they entered that game. Drake struggles mightily at scoring, and their defense is giving up nearly nine more points per game than they score.
It’s been a bigger problem picking up boards with 26.5 rebounds per game (349th nationally) and they only have 11.6 assists per game (238th nationally). One of the best team statistics they record is a 47.3 field goal percentage, but that’s also thanks to having just 62.2 possessions per 40 minutes (336th nationally).
Compare that to Iowa State, who averages 71.7 possessions per 40 minutes with a 50.2 field goal percentage. They also score 84.8 points per game and dish out the ball 18.8 times per game.
Also, Drake has been terrible when it comes to covering the spread. They’re just 6-20-1 at the spread in their last 27 games, 0-4-1 in their last five neutral site games, and 0-7 in their last seven games against a team with over a .600 winning percentage.
On the flip side, Iowa State is 6-2 at the spread in their last eight neutral site games, 10-4 in their last 14 games, and 15-7 in their last 22 non-conference games.
Iowa State will be a massive favorite against a bad Drake team, and we’ll see if the Cyclones struggle out of the gate like they have in multiple games this season. Considering how they’ve been able to adjust at halftime and take care of business away from Ames, it would be a surprise to see this team not leave Des Moines with a 20-point win.
What do you think the final score will be between Iowa State and Drake?