Iowa State vs Lipscomb Prediction, Preview & Odds: NCAA Tournament First Round

Originally posted on College Football News
By Pete Fiutak | Last updated Mar 19, 2025 10:07 PM ET

Iowa State was one of the most believed teams in the rankings for the first few months of the season with a 15-1 start. The lone loss was by two to Auburn.

The wheels didn’t exactly come off, but a 7-7 finish was rocky.

Lipscomb won both the Atlantic Sun regular season and tournament championships with just one loss since January. It’s the program’s second trip to the NCAA Tournament after making an appearance in 2018.

The winner gets either Ole Miss or North Carolina on Sunday.

Iowa State vs Lipscomb Game Preview

Iowa State vs Lipscomb How To Watch

Date: Friday, March 21
Venue: Fiserv Forum, Milwaukee, WI
Time: 1:30 pm ET
TV: TNT
Teams: (14) Lipscomb (25-9), (3) Iowa State (24-9)
Region: South
NCAA Tournament Schedule, Predictions, Previews

Why Lipscomb Will Win

This is one of those 3-D-and-Free teams no one wants to deal with.

The Bisons can rebound with anyone as part of a nasty defense that doesn’t force a lot of turnovers, but is great at coming up with stops.

They’re not amazing from three, but they hit 36% of them - and they take them in bulk. But where they really rock is on the free throw line hitting close to 80%. However …

Why Iowa State Will Win

Iowa State doesn’t foul a lot - it won’t put Lipscomb on the line enough to matter.

Unlike the Bisons, the Cyclones are great at forcing turnovers and is efficient at turning the big defensive plays into points.

As long as Iowa State settles in, moves the ball around well, and settles in for the good open shots, it’ll be fine.

It’ll want to open it up a wee bit, even if it doesn’t need to make this a track meet. The defense should keep the Bisons from doing much from the outside, and …

Iowa State vs Lipscomb: Who Will Win?

Iowa State is 26-2 when scoring more than 68 points. Those two losses came to Auburn, and in overtime at Arizona after the miraculous Caleb Love shot kept it alive. But Lipscomb will keep this from getting out of hand.

Iowa State is usually the team that likes to keep games in the high-60s, but again, if it opens it up just a little bit, it won’t have much of a problem - even if it takes over 30 minutes to start feeling comfortable.

Iowa State vs Lipscomb Prediction, Betting Lines

Prediction: Iowa State 76, Campbell 62
Iowa State vs Lipscomb Betting Lines
BetMGM Line: Iowa State -14.5, o/u: 143.5
DraftKings Line: Iowa State -14.5, o/u: 143.5
FanDuel Line: Iowa State -14.5, o/u: 143.5
ATS Confidence out of 5: 2

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