Dean Etheridge
Two teams both needing a win in the Big 12 for different reasons meet on Saturday. Here we look ahead to Oklahoma’s home fixture against Iowa State and try to predict the winner in our latest NCAAB betting picks.
- What; NCAAB
- Who; Oklahoma State Cowboys vs Iowa State Cyclones
- Where; Gallagher-Iba Arena, Stillwater, Oklahoma
- When; Saturday, January 21st, 2023
- Start Time; 2 pm ET
The Big 12 showdown pits struggling Oklahoma against the in-form Iowa State. Oklahoma sits in the bottom half of the table and is having a season to forget. Iowa are doing just fine, sitting at the top end of the table with both the Kansas sides. The Cyclones will be looking to kick on after a huge win over Texas on Wednesday night. While Oklahoma are still looking for that spark to get their season going.
2023 NCAA Championship Winner Latest Betting
Neither of these two teams feature amongst the favorites to win the 2023 NCAA Basketball Championship. Iowa State is +4000 with the best college basketball betting sites, Oklahoma is nowhere to be seen (okay, they’re +20000, if you fancy wasting your money).
The favorites are the Houston Cougars at +675. The Cougars are first in the ACC with an 18-1 record. They’re proving to be the standout team in this year’s NCAA, and this is backed up by the top sportsbooks who make them their overwhelming favorites.
The closest teams to the Cougars in the betting is Alabama at +1000, and then it’s Kansas and Purdue both at +1100, and UCLA at +1200.
The above odds are brought to you from BetOnline. More details about this top sportsbook, including their latest new customers offer, can be found at our BetOnline review. We’ve also put together an odds table with the latest betting to win the 2023 NCAA Basketball Championship, which you can see below.
| NCAAB Tournament Winner Betting 2023 |  |  |  |
| Houston Cougars | +675 | +675 | +675 |
| Alabama | +1000 | +1000 | +1000 |
| Kansas | +1100 | +1100 | +1100 |
| Purdue | +1100 | +1100 | +1100 |
| UCLA | +1200 | +1200 | +1200 |
| Tennessee | +1600 | +1300 | +1600 |
| Gonzaga | +2000 | +2000 | +2000 |
| Virginia | +2200 | +2200 | +2200 |
| Connecticut | +2200 | +2000 | +2000 |
| Texas | +2500 | +2500 | +2500 |
| Arizona | +2500 | +3000 | +2800 |
| Creighton | +3300 | +3300 | +3300 |
| Kansas State | +2800 | +2800 | +2800 |
| North Carolina | +3300 | +3300 | +3300 |
| TCU | +3500 | +3500 | +3500 |
Tough couple of fixtures lie ahead for Oklahoma State
Oklahoma State is having a season to forget. Their conference record in the Big 12 this season is 2-4, and overall it is 10-8. They sit eighth in the division. Mike Boynton’s team just can’t seem to find any consistency at the moment. It’s win one, lose one. And at the moment the Cowboys just don’t seem able to break the cycle.
In their last outing, the Cowboys pulled off a spectacular comeback to beat their cross town rivals, the Oklahoma Sooners. Oklahoma State were 30-24 down after the first period, and then in a ridiculously one sided second period, the Cowboys reeled off 48 points to the Sooners 26, giving the hosts a 72-56 win at the Gallagher-Iba Arena.
THAT'S A BEDLAM DUB!!#GoPokes | @MidFirst pic.twitter.com/fFh3gEW8eO
— OSU Cowboy Basketball (@OSUMBB) January 19, 2023
The fixtures don’t get any easier for Oklahoma State. After Saturday’s match against Iowa, they take on the number 7 ranked side Texas away from home on Tuesday night. It could be a troublesome couple of games for Oklahoma.
Iowa State are mixing it with the best
Iowa State sits third in the Big 12, just behind Kansas State and Kansas. All three have 5-1 conference records, but the two Kansas teams have superior overall records to the Cyclones.
Iowa is on a winning streak of one, and it was one hell of a win over the Texas Longhorns on Tuesday night. With a one point lead at the halfway mark (36-35), the Cyclones produced a blistering second half performance, outsourcing the Longhorns 42-32, to eventually take the match 78-67.
💨💨💨#Cyclones | #C5C pic.twitter.com/lCO1VpZM5i
— Iowa State Men’s Basketball (@CycloneMBB) January 18, 2023
It was a remarkable second period performance from Iowa, and especially when you take into consideration that they were coming off the back of a close run defeat to Kansas in their previous match.
The Cyclones pushed Kansas all the way at Allen Fieldhouse on Saturday, eventually losing 62-60. The defeat was all the more cruel given that K.J Adams only hit the winning score with 10 seconds left to play. Even after that, Iowa went down the other end of the court and had a shot to win. Calen Grill’s 3-point effort hitting the rim right on the buzzer.
Whilst the defeat must have been heartbreaking, it did prove that Iowa can mix it with the best, and may have played a part in their crushing win over Texas a few days later.
Now it’s Oklahoma’s turn to try their luck against Iowa. So, what chance do the top sportsbooks give them?
Oklahoma vs Iowa Betting Picks
The best March Madness betting sites make Iowa their overwhelming favorites to win this match. They are not worth backing on the moneyline, and some sportsbooks are not even offering odds.
On the handicap line, Iowa is giving away a lot of points, but they are well able to make up the difference and beat the spread.
Iowa is coming off that massive win over the Texas Longhorns. Confidence after that victory will be sky high, and if they can beat Texas by 11 points, then what are they going to do to Oklahoma? The only pick can be Iowa to win on the handicap spread.
