No. 6 LSU vs. No. 11 Iowa State preview for March Madness first-round matchup

The NCAA Tournament begins on Tuesday, March 15th with the First Four, and then moves on to the first round on Thursday, March 17 and Friday, March 18. No. 6 seed LSU Tigers will face No. 11 seed Iowa State Cyclones in the first round on Friday. Here’s an early look at what we can expect from the Tigers and Cyclones in this year’s March Madness Tournament.

Once the odds from DraftKings Sportsbook are made available for this game, we’ll add that information below. We’ll also add the game time and TV channel once it’s settled.

Game date: Friday, March 18th
Game time: 7:20 p.m. ET
TV channel: TBS
Location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Odds: LSU -5

No. 6 LSU

This will be an awkward trek into the NCAA Tournament for LSU as head coach Will Wade was fired last Saturday following a notice of allegations delivered by the NCAA. From an on-court standpoint, LSU heads into the big dance after a year where it started 15-1 but was hot and cold throughout the meat of SEC play. The Tigers struggled throughout the month of January but finished the regular season by winning five of their last eight games.

Tari Eason has been the leader for LSU this season, averaging 17 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. Darius Days, Xavier Pinson, and Brandon Murray have also been key contributors for the Tigers.

Record: 22-11, 9-9 SEC
KenPom adjusted offensive efficiency: 89
KenPom adjusted defensive efficiency: 5
Against The Spread: 19-14
Over Total: 14-19
Odds to win NCAA Championship: +8000

No. 11 Iowa State

The Iowa State Cyclones made as good of a one-year turnaround you’ll ever see in college basketball as they are a surprise entrance to the NCAA Tournament. Iowa State finished 2-22 overall and did not win a Big 12 game last season, but TJ Otzelberger has done a tremendous job in Year 1 in charge of this program.

Iowa State has done it all on the defensive end of the floor where they rate among the best in the country. The offense needs plenty of work, but they can be a dangerous team as opponents can get easily frustrated with how well the Cyclones play defensively. Izaiah Brockington is the team’s top player, leading Iowa State in points and rebounds by a fairly large margin.

Record: 20-12, 7-11 Big 12
KenPom adjusted offensive efficiency: 151
KenPom adjusted defensive efficiency: 10
Against The Spread: 17-15
Over Total: 15-17
Odds to win NCAA Championship: +25000