Frank Lorenzo
(25) Iowa Hawkeyes at (6) Wisconsin Badgers (-7.5)
Looking for their 17th win of the season, the Wisconsin Badgers host the Iowa Hawkeyes tonight (9:00 p.m. Eastern) at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wisconsin, in an interesting Big Ten matchup.
The Badgers won eight in a row before losing to Rutgers, 67-62, on January 11. They bounced back by defeating Nebraska, 70-55, four days later. Wisconsin is now 16-2 on the season with a 4-1 record in the Big 10. The team’s only other loss came against Duke early in the season.
Forward Frank Kaminsky was his usual dominant self for the Badgers against Nebraska, scoring 22 points. Sophomore Bronson Koenig, who averages just over five points per game, added valuable secondary scoring, with 11 points on 4/5 shooting.
“We know he has ability, and his teammates know and trust him since he’s been on the floor in a lot of big situations,” coach Bo Ryan said of Koenig. “The guys relaxed him and he knows what I expect. He knows what his position is, he knows what it entails, so he did what I thought he would do.”
The Iowa Hawkeyes are 13-5 on the season and also 4-1 inside the Big Ten. They come into tonight’s game on a two-game winning streak, with victories over Minnesota and Ohio State. Iowa is one of the best teams in transition, but the Badgers will be waiting.
“They’re going to look to push in transition,” Badgers forward Duje Dukan told the team’s official website. “That’s where they get a majority of their points. Along with their rebounding, they’re long and athletic, that’s a key.”
Iowa has already proved to be a tough out on the road. They are a perfect 3-0 in true road games this season, including wins at North Carolina and Ohio State.
The Badgers are 7.5-point favorites in the odds. Wisconsin is 2-4-1 ATS in its last seven games at home against Iowa. With the Hawkeyes playing so well on the road, take Iowa and the points.
(Photo credit: White & Blue Review (flickr) [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/legalcode].)
