2010 March Madness Northern Iowa vs. Michigan State Picks & Prediction

Last Updated on March 26, 2010 5:00 pm by drew

Mich. St.-N. Iowa Pick

The banged-up Michigan State Spartans face the Cinderella Northern Iowa Panthers Friday at 9:37PM ET in the
Midwest Regional Semifinal.

Bet March Madness
This game will take place from the Edward Jones Dome in

St. Louis,
Missouri. The Spartans enter the game as the No. 5 seed while the Panthers are the No. 9 seed.
Oddsmakers from online sports book SPORTSBETTING.com have made

Michigan
State 1-point favorites over


Northern Iowa on Friday night. The over/under has been set at 122.

Michigan
State is the lone remaining Final Four team from last season. The Spartans are seeking their 11^th Elite Eight appearance in school history and fifth in the last 10 years. MSU has won five of its last six including a 70-67 win over New Mexico State and an 85-83 win over

Maryland in the second round of the tournament. The Spartans won the game after Korie Lucious hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer. In the win, MSU lost its leading scorer, Kalin Lucas, to an Achilles ligament tear. He will miss the rest of the tournament. Durrell Summers stepped up for MSU in Lucas’ absence as he had 26 points. Raymar Morgan added 17 points and nine rebounds.

Northern Iowa is making its first Sweet Sixteen appearance on Friday. The Panthers have won their last six games including the amazing 69-67 upset of

Kansas in the second round of the tournament. The Panthers forced the Jayhawks into 15 turnovers and just 6-of-23 shooting from 3-point land to get the win. Jordan Eglseder had 14 points and five rebounds for UNI while Ali Farokhmanesh had 16 points and Jake Koch had 10 points.

Michigan
State may have injury problems, but the Spartans are coached by Tom Izzo, and he always has his teams ready to compete. March is a magical month for MSU and no matter what happens, the Spartans have showed a tendency to play to the level of their competition. In a close game, you have to like Izzo’s chances to push the right buttons to find a way to win. That over/under seems too low. Oddsmakers aren’t giving MSU enough credit to be able to score.

Our NCAA Tournament Free Pick for this matchup is:

MICHIGAN
STATE -1 and OVER 122
March Madness Betting Trends



Northern Iowa is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games

Northern Iowa is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games

The total has gone UNDER in 17 of
Northern Iowa‘s last 25 games

Michigan
State is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games

March Madness Injury Report
MICHIGAN ST

[F] 03/22/2010 – Delvon Roe probable Friday vs.
Northern Iowa ( Knee ) 

[F] 03/22/2010 – Chris Allen probable Friday vs.
Northern Iowa ( Foot )  

(!)[F] 03/21/2010 – Kalin Lucas out for season ( Foot ) 

NORTHERN IOWA

No Injuries Reported
March Madness Game Odds


Michigan
State Spartans -1 Over 122

Northern Iowa Panthers +1 Under 122
Bet March Madness
Posted: 3/26/10 5:00PM ET