Iona vs North Alabama College Basketball Picks, Best Bets and Odds 11/20/2021
North Alabama Lions (1-1) vs. Iona Gaels (4-0)
November 20, 2021 8:30 pm EDT
The Line: Iona Gaels -13 ; Over/Under: 127.5
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The Iona Gaels and the North Alabama Lions meet Saturday in college basketball action from HP Field House. Iona is coming off a Friday matchup versus Liberty. In that one the Gaels eked out a four-point win. As for the Lions, they played Manhattan in their last game. North Alabama ended up losing by four points there. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.
Iona kicked off their year with a win over Appalachian State 65-53. The Gaels were able to keep it going in game two against Harvard, but needed overtime for a 90-87 win. Iona kept it going in game three with an 82-74 win over Hofstra.
In Friday’s matchup against Liberty, Iona went into halftime trailing 25-23 but outplayed the Flames in the second half during a 54-50 win. Nelly Junior Joseph led the team with his 14 points and 12 rebounds.
Over on the North Alabama side, they had a tricky matchup against Mississippi State in their opener. The Lions lost that one 75-49. In game two North Alabama was able to get into the win column, posting a dominant 99-47 victory over UVI.
On Friday the Lions played Manhattan. North Alabama scored just 18 points in the second half following an initial 33-31 lead during a 55-51 defeat. Jamari Blackmon led the team with 13 points and two assists.
The Lions are 4-1 ATS in their last five overall and 2-6 ATS in their last eight versus a team with a winning percentage above .600. The under is 5-2 in North Alabama’s last seven Saturday games.
Meanwhile, the Gaels are 12-3-1 ATS in their last 16 overall and the under is 5-2 in their last seven Saturday games. The under is 6-1 in Iona’s last seven neutral-site games.
PICK: I’m going to take a stab on Iona but staying away. The Gaels shot terribly in the Friday game at just 27.8 percent from the floor. Their saving grace was the rebounding game, which they won 43-34. Give Iona some credit for powering out a gutsy win, but they didn’t look good doing it.
As for North Alabama, they were pretty solid on the boards versus Manhattan (34 rebounds) but shot just 31.6 percent from the field with 14 turnovers and had only five team assists. I don’t think they’ll be able to overcome Iona either.
