Point Spread: Indiana Opens As Modest Favorite over Wyoming in First Four Game

Indiana is part of the first day of the NCAA Tournament this year, playing Wyoming in Dayton, Ohio, on Tuesday night. The oddsmakers think the Hoosiers will win. Here's the latest on the point spread, and a complete breakdown on what both teams have done vs. the spread.

Tom Brew | Mar 14, 2022

DAYTON, Ohio. — Indiana is back in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in six years, and oddsmakers think the Hoosiers are going to stick around for a while.

According to the Fanduel.com gambling website, the Hoosiers are a 4-point favorite over Wyoming in Tuesday night's First Four play-in game in Dayton, Ohio. The game, the second of a doubleheader, is expected to start around 9:10 p.m. ET

Indiana is 20-13 on the season. The Hoosiers finished ninth in the Big Ten during the regular season, and won two games in the Big Ten Tournament before losing to Iowa 80-77 in the semifinals.

Wyoming is 25-8 on the season, and finished 13-5 in the Mountain West, good for fourth place in the league. The Cowboys were really tough at home, going 14-1, but lost their last three league road games and are a different team away from Laramie.

They are led by 6-foot-7 fifth-year senior forward Hunter Maldanado (18.4 points per game) and 6-foot-9 sophomore forward Graham Ike (19.6 ppg).

Indiana is 19-14 against the point spread this season, but have been much better in Bloomington than on the road. The Hoosiers are 14-4 at home straight up and 12-6 vs. the spread at Assembly Hall. On the road, Indiana is just 4-8 straight up and 4-8 against the spread.

But they are 3-1 straight up and have covered in all four of their neutral court games this season in Indianapolis, beating NCAA-bound Notre Dame in December and now Michigan and Illinois in the Big Ten tourney. They lost to Iowa, but covered as a 6-point underdog.

Here are Indiana's results thus far this season, both straight up and against the spread:

Nov. 9 — Beat Eastern Michigan 68-62 as a 24-point favorite (lost)
Nov. 12 — Beat Northern Illinois 85-49 as a 25.5-point favorite (won)
Nov. 17 — Beat St. John's 76-74 as a 6-point favorite (lost)
Nov. 21 — Beat Louisiana 76-44 as an 11.5-point favorite (won)
Nov. 23 — Beat Jackson State 70-35 as a 22.5-point favorite (won)
Nov. 27 — Beat Marshall 90-79 as a 10.5-point favorite (won)
Nov. 30 — Lost at Syracuse 112-110 as a 2.5-point favorite (lost)
Dec. 4 — Beat Nebraska 68-55 as an 11-point favorite (won)
Dec. 8 — Lost at No. 22 Wisconsin 64-59 as a 4.5-point underdog (lost)
Dec. 12 — Beat Merrimack 81-49 as a 20-point favorite (won)
Dec. 18 — Beat Notre Dame 64-56 in Indianapolis as a 4.5-point favorite (won)
Dec. 22 — Beat Northern Kentucky 79-61 as a 17-point favorite (won)
Jan. 2 — Lost at Penn State 61-58 as a 2.5-point favorite (lost)
Jan. 6 — Beat No. 13 Ohio State 67-51 as a 2-point favorite (won)
Jan. 9 — Beat Minnesota 73-60 as an 11-point favorite (won)
Jan. 13 — Lost at Iowa 83-74 as a 4.5-point underdog (lost)
Jan. 17 — Won at Nebraska 78-71 as a 9-point favorite (lost)
Jan. 20 — Beat No. 4 Purdue 68-65 as a 4-point underdog (won)
Jan. 23 — Lost to Michigan 80-62 as a 4-point favorite (lost)
Jan. 26 — Beat Penn State 74-57 as an 8.5-point favorite (won)
Jan. 29 — Won at Maryland 68-55 as a 1.5-point favorite (won)
Feb. 5 — Lost to No. 18 Illinois 74-57 as a 1.5-point favorite (lost)
Feb. 8 — Lost at Northwestern 59-51 as a 2-point favorite (lost)
Feb. 12 — Lost at No. 17 Michigan State 76-61 as a 4-point underdog (lost)
Feb. 15 — Lost to No. 15 Wisconsin 74-69 as a 3.5-point favorite (lost)
Feb. 21 — Lost at No. 22 Ohio State 80-69 in OT as a 7-point underdog (lost)
Feb. 24 — Beat Maryland 74-64 as a 6.5-point favorite (won)
Feb. 27 — Won at Minnesota 74-69 as a 3-point favorite (won)
March 2 — Lost to Rutgers 66-63 as a 5.5-point favorite (lost)
March 5 — Lost at Purdue 69-67 as a 10-point underdog (won)
March 10 — Beat Michigan 74-69 in Indianapolis as as 3-point underdog (won)
March 11 — Beat No. 16 Illinois 65-63 in Indianapolis as a 5-point underdog (won)
March 12 — Lost to No. 24 Iowa 80-77 in Indianapolis as a 6-point underdog (won)

Wyoming plays in the tough Mountain West Conference, which is ranked No. 8 in the country in the NET rankings. The Cowboys are 18-14 against the spread, but are just 2-3 in their last five games and failed to cover in all of them.

The Cowboys have been underdogs in 12 games this season, but are 5-7 straight up in those games and 7-5 against the spread.

Here's their full schedule and what they've done vs. the number.

Nov. 10 — Beat Detroit Mercy 85-47 as a 5-point favorite (won)
Nov. 14 — Beat Arkansas-Pine Bluff 85-45 as a 24.5-point favorite (won)
Nov. 18 — Won at Washington 77-72 in OT as a 1.5-point underdog (won)
Nov. 22 — Won at Grand Canyon 68-61 as an 2.5-point underdog (won)
Nov. 26 — Beat Hastings 108-59, no line.
Nov. 29 — Won at Cal-State Fullerton 79-66 as a 3.5-point favorite (won)
Dec. 2 —Beat Denver 77-64 as a 20.5-point favorite (lost)
Dec. 4 — Beat McNeese 79-58 as an 20.5-point favorite (won)
Dec. 8 — Lost at No. 11 Arizona 94-65 as a 16.5-point underdog (lost)
Dec. 11 — Beat Utah Valley 74-62 as a 9-point favorite (won)
Dec. 22 — Lost to Stanford 66-63 in Honolulu as a 1.5-point underdog (lost)
Dec. 23 — Beat Northern Iowa 71-69 in Honolulu as a 3-point favorite (lost)
Dec. 25 — Beat South Florida 77-57 in Honolulu as a 7.5-point favorite (won)
Jan 1. — Versus Boise State ppd. COVID
Jan 4 — At Nevada ppd. COVID
Jan. 8 — At Fresno State ppd. COVID
Jan. 12 — Versus San Diego State, ppd. COVID
Jan. 15 — Won at Utah State 61-58 as a 2.5-point favorite (lost)
Jan. 17 — Won at Nevada 77-67 as a 3.5-point favorite (won)
Jan. 19 — Beat San Jose State 84-69 as an 14-point favorite (won)
Jan. 22 — Beat New Mexico 93-91 as a 11.5-point favorite (lost)
Jan. 25 — Lost at Boise State 65-62 as a 5-point underdog (won)
Jan. 28 — Won at Air Force 63-61 as a 7.5-point underdog (won)
Jan. 31 — Beat Colorado State 84-78 in OT as a 1.5-point underdog (won)
Feb. 3 — Beat Boise State 72-65 as a 1.5-point favorite (won)
Feb. 6 — Won at Fresno State 74-57 as an 4.5-point underdog (won)
Feb. 8 — Beat Utah State 78-76 in OT as a 1.5-point favorite (won)
Feb. 12 — Won at San Jose State 74-52 as a 14-point favorite (won)
Feb. 15 — Lost at New Mexico 75-66 as a 5.5-point favorite (lost)
Feb. 19 — Beat Air Force 80-69 in OT as a 16-point favorite (lost)
Feb. 23 —Lost at Colorado State 61-55 as a 6.5-point underdog (won)
Feb. 26 — Beat Nevada 74-61 as a 7-point favorite (won)
Feb. 28 — Lost to San Diego State 73-66 as a 1.5-point underdog (lost)
March 2 — Lost at UNLV 64-57 as a 2-point underdog (lost)
March 5 — Beat Fresno State 68-64 in OT as as 5.5-point favorite (lost)
March 10 — Beat UNLV 59-56 in Las Vegas as a 1.5-point favorite (lost)
March 11 — Lost to Boise State 68-61 in Las Vegas as a 3-point underdog (lost)

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