The 15-seed Iona Gaels (12-5) meet the 2-seed Alabama Crimson Tide (24-6) Saturday, March 20 for a first-round game in the East Regional at the Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The tip-off is set for 4 p.m. ET and will be airing on TBS.
Below, we look at the early March Madness Round 1 matchup Iona-Alabama odds and lines. Will one of these teams end up as this year’s National Champion? Don’t forget to check out all of the teams’ March Madness odds.
Legendary head coach Rick Pitino has led the Gaels to the NCAA Tournament, the fifth school he has helped to the Big Dance.
The Gaels needed to win four games in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) tournament, and they did just that, dispatching Quinnipiac, Siena, Niagara and Fairfield in the final while going 3-0-1 ATS during the run.
Iona has won six in a row overall, and they’re 5-0-1 ATS during the span dating back to Feb. 17, their last loss at Quinnipiac. Overall, Iona went 11-5-1 ATS against the spread this season.
The Gaels will be making their fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance. They fell to North Carolina in the first round in 2019, 88-73. They have lost 13 straight games in the Big Dance since their lone win over Holy Cross in the first round back in 1980.
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Alabama topped LSU 80-79 in the SEC Tournament Final and they secured a two-seed as a result. They have won six in a row since its last setback at Arkansas on Feb. 24, and they’re 4-1 ATS across the past five outings.
The Crimson Tide used a combination of high scoring (79.6 PPG) and solid defense (70.3 PPG) to pick up 24 wins, a regular-season conference crown and the league tourney trophy.
They’re also one of the top units defensively against the three, allowing opponents to hit just 29.0 percent from behind the arc, good for 16th in the country.
Alabama has its highest seed since 2002 when they were also a 2-seed. They pushed past scrappy Florida Atlantic in Greenville, S.C. in the first round that season under head coach Mark Gottfried before falling to JUCO transfer Antonio Gates and Kent State in the second round. Yes, THAT Antonio Gates of NFL fame.
Iona vs. Alabama: Odds, spread and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated Monday at 10:32 p.m. ET.
- Money line: Iona +1250 (bet $100 to win $1,250) | Alabama -3000 (bet $3,000 to win $100)
- Against the spread/ATS: Iona +17 (-110) | Alabama -17 (-110)
- Over/Under: 146.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
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