Iona vs Saint Bonaventure Predictions and Odds (Dec. 11)

• Iona and Saint Bonaventure meet in the Hall of Fame Invitational on Sunday, December 11.
• Iona is a 5.5-point favorite over the Bonnies at neutral Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.
• Read below for Iona vs Saint Bonaventure odds, analysis and prediction

Iona (5-2, 2-0 Metro Atlantic) is a 5.5-point favorite over Saint Bonaventure in the Hall of Fame Invitational at 11:30 am ET Sunday on the YES Network at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., the first game of a quadruple-header. The Gaels have won and covered their last three games after losing to Santa Clara 86-76 in Las Vegas on Nov. 26.

Saint Bonaventure (6-3, 0-0 Atlantic 10)  had a four-game win-and-cover streak broken in a 17-point loss at Buffalo on Dec. 3 but recovered in a 19-point victory over Cleveland State the last time out. The Bonnies beat Notre Dame in the Gotham Classic at the UBS Arena on Long Island over the Thanksgiving weekend.

Iona vs Saint Bonaventure Odds

Odds from DraftKings Sportsbook on Dec. 10.

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Iona is a 5.5-point favorite over Saint Bonaventure in the Hall of Fame Invitational at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. The Gaels are 5-2 ATS this season and have won and covered their last three. They have been favored in every game but their most recent, when they blew out Saint Louis 84-62 at a one-point home underdog on Dec. 6.

Saint Bonaventure is 6-2 ATS this season. The Bonnies have gone over the total in five of their eight games and four of their last five. The Bonnies have won 11 of the previous 16 series meetings, but the teams have not played since December 2013.

Iona on a Mission

This is a pay-back season for Iona, which won 25 games and rolled to the Metro Atlantic regular-season title but was upset by 11.5-point underdog Rider in the MAAC tournament championship game a year ago. The deflated Gaels had to settled for an NIT berth, but they are off to another strong season this season behind returnees Nelly Junior Joseph, Walter Clayton Jr. and JC transfer Daniss Jenkins.

3 that @coachcodyhop was high on last year at the JC level who are piquing the interest of NBA scouts:

Daniss Jenkins (Odessa) 18.6 PPG, 4 RPG, 5 APG at Iona

Nae'Qwan Tomlin (Chipola) 10 PPG, 5.5 RPG at Kansas St

Deshanwdre Washington (NW FL) 13 PPG, 8 RPG, 5.7 APG at NMSU https://t.co/pOWa8851mL

— Brad Winton (@BradWinton) December 8, 2022

Six’3 Jenkins (18.6 points, 4.0 rebounds, 4.9 assists) and 6’2 Clayton Jr. (16.0, 4.7, 3.3) had 20 points each and 6’9 Joseph (11.4 points, 6.3 rebounds) had 16 in the Gaels’ victory over Saint Louis, avenging a one-point loss last season. Saint Louis was picked to finish second in the Atlantic-10 in the preseason coaches/media poll. A reserve last season, Clayton Jr. added a career-high 12 rebounds for his first career double-double.

Iona is the overwhelming choice to win the MAAC again this year. Joseph was a unanimous selection to the preseason all-league first team, and Clayton Jr. was named to the second team. The Gaels ranked No. 14 in the collegeinsider.com mid-major top 25 before the Saint Louis game.

Saint Bonaventure Starting Anew

This might be the best time of the year in the best season in quite a while to play Saint Bonaventure. Not only did coach Mark Schmidt lose his top eight scorers from a 23-10 team that finished fourth in the Atlantic 10 and lost to Xavier in the semifinals of the NIT, but he also lost 99.7 of the minutes played. Every 2021-22 starter started at least 30 games and averaged at least 30 minutes per, and four averaged at least 37.5 minutes.

#NCAA #Basketball Week 5 – Latinoamericanos destacados.
TOP SCORERS
Jaime Jaquez 17,3 🇲🇽 (UCLA)
Daryl Banks III 16,9 🇵🇷 (S. Bonaventure)
Felipe Haase 16,7 🇨🇱 (South ern Miss)
Colin Castleton 16,6 🇵🇦 (Florida)
David Jones 14,9 🇩🇴 (St. John´s) pic.twitter.com/9ALzqlyfft

— NCAA BASKETBALL LATINOAMÉRICA (@NcaabasketLA) December 5, 2022

Schmidt mined the transfer portal for backcourt starters Saint Peter’s transfer Daryl Banks (16.7 points) and Holy Cross transfer Kyrell Luc (15.6 points). The pair are carrying the scoring load and are continuing the play-every-minute tradition while averaging 39.1 and 36.6 minutes, respectively. Luc is averaging two steals per game.

Morgan State transfer and Brooklyn native 6’10 Chad Venning (10.6 points. 5.4 rebounds) had his first career double-double against Notre Dame and was named the Gotham Classic MVP. The Bonnies are shooting 43 percent from the field, in the lower half of Division I. They were picked to finish 10th in the A10 preseason coaches/media poll.

Iona vs Saint Bonaventure Prediction

The Gaels are stepping up in class against another Atlantic 10 team here, but that has not bothered Rick Pitino’s group. Iona beat Alabama and played national champion Kansas close in a 13-point loss last season. Pitino has an eye for talent, and this group will the best in his three seasons with the Gaels. Iona is the play against rebuilding Saint Bonaventure.

• Pick: Iona -5.5 (-110)
• Season CBK: 11-4 ATS