The Ohio State Buckeyes take on the Iowa Hawkeyes in Iowa City, Iowa. Tip-off is set for 9 p.m. ET on BTN.
Iowa is favored by 6.5 points on the spread with a moneyline of -260. The total is set at 141.5 points.
Here’s my Ohio State vs. Iowa prediction and college basketball picks for February 25, 2026.
Ohio State vs Iowa Prediction
My Pick: Iowa -6.5 (Play to -7)
My Ohio State vs Iowa best bet is on the Hawkeyes to cover the spread. For all of your college basketball bets, be sure to find the best lines by using our live NCAAB odds page.
Ohio State vs. Iowa Odds
| Ohio State Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+6.5 -115 | 141.5 -115 / -105 | +210 |
| Iowa Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-6.5 -105 | 141.5 -115 / -105 | -260 |
- Ohio State vs Iowa spread: Iowa -6.5
- Ohio State vs Iowa over/under: 141.5 points
- Ohio State vs Iowa moneyline: Ohio State +210, Iowa -260
Ohio State vs Iowa College Basketball Betting Preview
Ohio State Basketball
Every game has an NCAA Tournament-like feel for Ohio State, as it tries to get on the right side of the NCAA Tournament discussion. The Buckeyes are 17-10 overall and 9-7 in Big Ten play. Adding another Quad 1 win would help things a bit.
For the last month, Ohio State just alternated wins and losses. It went 5-5 and the longest winning streak was one game. If that trend holds, the Buckeyes will win this game. But it won’t be an easy task.
Bruce Thornton is the go-to guy for the Buckeyes' offense, which ranks 24th in KenPom’s offensive efficiency. He's been on a tear of late, scoring 27+ points in all three games since stud shooter John Mobley Jr. went down with an injury.
It's not just that Thornton is putting up big numbers; he's shooting a dynamite 54% from the field this season. He's the main reason why the Buckeyes are a top-25 team in 2-point percentage.
Assuming Mobley is out again with his finger injury, Ohio State will be limited in the shooting department. Even with Mobley, the Buckeyes had shooting issues.
The problems are stronger without him. Devin Royal is shooting 31% from deep, Amare Bynum is below 30% and center Christoph Tilly is at 23%. That allows defenders to play off of the shooters and try to cut off Thornton's interior scoring.
On the defensive end, Ohio State has some pretty severe problems. It ranks 59th in defensive efficiency, per KenPom. The Buckeyes regularly get crushed at the rim, as opponents shoot 51.8% against them from 2-point range.
That's the sign of a pretty bad defense, and it's been a season-long issue. They might have the length, but none of the bigs are good post defenders or shot blockers.
Iowa Basketball
Iowa is firmly in the NCAA Tournament mix, but it's now playing for seeding as it looks to avoid the dreaded 8/9 game. The Hawkeyes have lost three of their last four games, but the only bad loss came against Maryland.
Ben McCollum has gotten his style to work in the Big Ten. Iowa plays at one of the slowest tempos in the sport, ranking 351st in adjusted tempo. It also ranks 34th in defensive efficiency and forces turnovers 20% of the time — the 15th-best mark in the country.
On the flip side, Iowa allows opponents to shoot 53% on 2s. That's a major concern against teams with length, as the Hawkeyes' tallest rotation player is just 6-foot-10.
Offensively, everything starts and ends with Bennett Stirtz — one of the truly elite point guards in the country. He leads the team with 20.5 points and 4.5 assists per game while playing close to 37 minutes per contest.
A true Iron Man of sorts for Iowa, if you give him the smallest glimmer of space, he can drill a back-breaking shot.
The Hawkeyes are 30th in offensive efficiency, per KenPom. They shoot 35.7% from deep and 58.9% on 2s. A fair amount of the interior scoring comes from looks created by Stirtz. He's a smooth operator in pick-and-rolls and loves to find his rolling bigs, Cam Manyawu, Tavion Banks and Alvaro Folgueiras.
Ohio State vs. Iowa Betting Analysis
The line has jumped from Iowa -4.5 to -6.5, likely due to Ohio State's injury issues.
I liked the Hawkeyes up to seven, so I'll stick with Iowa at -6.5.
All these injuries for Ohio State force it to rely on everything to come from Thornton.
The Hawkeyes are the better team in general, and I think Iowa could game plan nicely to stop Thornton and force the others to beat them.
My Pick: Iowa -6.5 (Play to -7)
