IOWA CITY, Iowa – Coach Mike Woodson and the Hoosiers look to continue their winning ways with a road game against Iowa at 8 p.m. ET Saturday at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Indiana has won five straight games, including three in Big Ten play, to improve to 13-3 overall and 4-1 in Big Ten play. The Hoosiers snapped a four-game losing streak against Iowa last season, but Woodson has not won at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in two tries. Coach Fran McCaffery and the Hawkeyes enter Saturday’s game with an 11-4 overall record and a 2-2 run in Big Ten play, most recently defeating Nebraska 97-87 at home in overtime.

Welcome to our live blog, where we’ll share updates, highlights, stats and thoughts on the game live from Iowa City.

6:49 p.m. – Some pregame thoughts on the matchup. Can Indiana limit Iowa from 3? Hawkeyes are 14th nationally in 3s made per game. Indiana can run with Iowa a bit, but must limit turnovers doing so. I don’t think Iowa has anyone who can hang with Oumar Ballo inside. Expect a high-scoring game.

5:45 p.m. – While Reneau and Newton won’t play tonight, it’s a good sign to see both of them lightly putting up shots and dribbling around as Indiana warms up for tonight’s game. They’re not exerting much energy doing so, but it’s good to see them at least moving around and not just sitting on the bench.

4 p.m. – Indiana junior power forward Malik Reneau remains out for today’s game, along with Jakai Newton and Gabe Cupps, who are out indefinitely. Reneau suffered an apparent right knee injury against Rutgers and did not play against Penn State or USC. Luke Goode has started in his place.

Indiana and Iowa meet in a battle of Big Ten teams searching for consistency in what is a crowded conference this season. 

The Hawkeyes have been playing in shootouts all season which have led to some wild games, including allowing 116 points to Wisconsin and rallying from down double digits to beat Nebraska. Meanwhile, the talented Hoosiers are starting to find their rhythm this season after a slow start, winners of three straight in Big Ten play. 

Can Indiana score an impressive road win against an Iowa team that has been a tough out at home? 

Here’s everything you need to know to bet on this Big Ten matchup. 

Spread

Moneyline

Total: 166.5 (Over -108/Under -112)

Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook

Indiana

Myles Rice: The Washington State transfer has done plenty for the Hoosiers this season, averaging 12 points with more than three rebounds and three assists to go with more than a steal. Against a fast-paced and offensive-minded Iowa team, Rice will be tasked with keeping this Hoosiers offense on track. 

Iowa

Payton Sandfort: After scoring zero points in the first half against Nebraska, Sandfort scored 30 in the second half and overtime to spark a double digit comeback at home. The veteran forward has been a bit down relative to last season, but may have found something with the offensive outburst on Tuesday.

The Hakweyes should be able to dictate the terms of this game in the open court against a porous Indiana transition defense that is bottom 100 in points allowed in transition this season. 

The Hawkeyes are an elite three-point shooting team with its ability to space out the floor and should have little issue moving the ball around Indiana’s slow-footed defense, but count on the Hoosiers to be able to score at a high clip as well. 

Iowa’s defense has struggled on the glass all season, outside the top 300 in defensive rebounding rate, and is 294th in two-point field goal percentage allowed, per KenPom. With that in mind, the Hoosiers can close the gap with the uber-efficient Hawkeyes (fifth in effective field goal percentage) with its ability to generate more shots. 

The Hoosiers are 95th in effective field goal percentage and do most of its work on the interior. With the team’s strong offensive rebounding and ability to score from in close, I like the team’s chances of scoring against Iowa’s shaky frontcourt. 

While the total seems high, I can only bet over in this Big Ten matchup. The Hawkeyes’ last 10 games have featured an average of 174 points. The team is consistently playing in shootouts, and I can’t go against it with a willing partner in a high scoring affair in Indiana. 

PICK: OVER 166.5

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) – If you stepped outside right now, you probably wouldn’t consider this warm weather.

But despite the snow on your windshield or ice on your driveway, this weather is much warmer than where it should be.

And State Climatologist Justin Glisan says this could have bigger effects than which jacket we wear.

“You put this year and last year together; the warmest two years on record for Iowa.” he said.

In 2024, Iowa’s temperature averaged just over 2 degrees warmer than normal, marking it the hottest year in Iowa’s records, which date back to 1872.

And while two degrees may not sound like a massive change, Glisan says it’s these small changes that can end up creating extreme weather.

“It’s kind of counterintuitive to say this, but with a warming winter, we do see more cold extremes, we do see more polar vortex outbreaks… Also on the flip side, more flash flooding, as I mentioned, more rainfall in the winter time.” he said.

And with these higher temps and increased risks for extreme weather, winter-based businesses, like Sundown Mountain Resort in Dubuque, have felt the burden.

“Last year was tough. If you’re in the ski industry, enduring the warmest winter ever record was tough… it was a fight to keep enough snow on the slopes to let our customers come out.” said Mark Gordon, General Manager of Sundown Mountain.

But Glisan says not all hope is lost.

While significant change will likely take collaboration between the public and private sector, he says simple steps like fixing a leaky faucet or investing in renewable energy can keep these numbers from climbing past the point of no return.

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