Ohio State men’s last win came against Iowa; they are eight-point dogs against the Hawkeyes tonight

The last time that the Ohio State men’s basketball team won a game was on Saturday, Jan. 21 when the Buckeyes welcomed the Iowa Hawkeyes to Value City Arena. On that fateful day, Chris Holtmann’s squad walked out with its third Big Ten win of the season 93-77.

Since then, OSU has lost six straight to bring its season record to 11-14 overall and 3-11 in conference. On the other hand, the Hawkeyes came to Columbus three weeks ago 12-6 on the season and 4-3 in the B1G. After losing the reeling Buckeyes and the Michigan State Spartans, Iowa won four of five and enter tonight’s return contest against Ohio State at 16-9 (8-6).

The Bucks and Hawks will tip off at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN2 from Carver-Hawkeye Arena in a game that the home team is hoping will push it into position to secure a double-bye in the upcoming conference tournament, while the visitors are just hoping for any shred positive momentum to wrap up the season on some sort of positive.

The experts at DraftKings SportsBook have installed the Hawkeyes as eight-point favorites in tonight’s game, and aside from the obviously disappointing record that the Buckeyes bring into the contest, recent stats aren’t on their side either.

Ohio State has lost each of its last seven night games. Tonight’s tip: 9 p.m. ET

Iowa is 12-2 at home this season. Tonight’s venue: Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Iowa’s last home loss was inexplicably against Eastern Illinois on Dec. 21.

Things aren’t looking good for the Buckeyes. But, there are more betting odds than just the spread. The total points line for the game is set at 152.5, so DraftKings is projecting a final score somewhere in the range of 80-72, and that one seems slightly more difficult to achieve, since it has been nearly a month since OSU scored more than 70 points.

However, who was their opponent in that magically high-scoring game? That’s right, it was Iowa. In the six games since the loss in Columbus, the Hawkeyes are averaging 77 points per game, so obviously within shouting distance of their single-team o/u total. But, man, imagining the Buckeyes getting to 72 points on the road is tough right now.

They scored 70 in their blowout loss to Indiana on Jan. 28, but they’ve only hit 70 or more points in road games three times this season, with a few more neutral site games thrown in on top. So, I don’t know that I would count on the Buckeyes to hold up their end of the scoring bargain in order to get the game across the 153-point mark, but it's your money, do with it as you see fit.

The best bet on the game might be the moneylines. The Buckeyes are +295. So, if you bet $100, you will take home $395, for a $295 profit. But, let’s be serious, no one is making that bet. Iowa, on the other hand, is -360, meaning that you would have to bet $360 in order to profit $100. Obviously not the best return on investment, but it sure does feel like easy money at this point in the Buckeyes’ season, especially playing in Iowa City.

Despite all of the unappetizing betting odds for Ohio State, I will still be watching and rooting for the visitors to get out of Iowa with a much-needed W.

Odds/lines subject to change. T&Cs apply. See draftkings.com/sportsbook for details.