#19 Michigan @ Iowa

Who will WIN this matchup?

#19 Michigan Wolverines (11-5)

@ Iowa Hawkeyes (12-5)

Current odds:

#19 Michigan Wolverines: (+160)

Iowa Hawkeyes: (-180)

• The line for this game is Iowa by 5 points.

• Twentieth-ranked Michigan looks to stop its recent slide when it visits 24th-ranked Iowa Friday in a Big Ten game. The Wolverines, who were unranked to start the season, rose to No. 4 in the national polls after knocking off top-ranked Gonzaga in the Battle 4 Atlantis final Nov. 29, but have gone 4-5 over their last nine games to tumble down the rankings, and hope to stop the bleeding by notching their first true road win of the campaign following four losses, including a 75-67 setback to Minnesota on Sunday. “We’re just going to keep competing hard and get back to the drawing board,” Michigan coach Juwan Howard told reporters. “We’re going to look at some film and see where we can get better.” Iowa climbed back into the Top 25 following a pair of victories in the last week.

• The Hawkeyes cruised past No. 17 Maryland 67-49 to improve to 7-1 at home before knocking down 10 3-pointers en route to a 75-62 triumph over Northwestern to climb back to .500 in conference play, and hope to stay on the winning track by avenging a 103-91 loss to Michigan on Dec. 6. “It’s up to us to step up,” Iowa guard Bakari Evelyn told the media. “When we’re flowing and clicking I think we’re a pretty good team.”

• Zavier Simpson produced 19 points, nine assists and six rebounds, but the Wolverines were outscored 11-2 in the final three minutes in the loss to Minnesota. Franz Wagner drained four 3-pointers en route to 17 points while Jon Teske and Eli Brooks each scored nine points, but shot a combined 7-of-20 from the floor against the Golden Gophers. Isaiah Livers, who is Michigan’s second leader scorer at 13.6 points per contest, is expected to miss his fifth consecutive game with a groin issue, and there’s no timetable for his return.

• Luka Garza scored a team-high 27 points on 10-of-14 shooting and blocked a pair of shots despite being plagued by foul trouble in the first half of the win against Northwestern. Joe Wieskamp added 11 points, six rebounds and three assists to finish in double figures for the eighth straight game while C.J. Fredrick tallied 11 points and five assists after missing the previous two games with a stress reaction in his foot. “He looked like he didn’t miss a beat and if he’s good to go he’s going to be in our starting lineup,” Iowa coach Fran McCaffery told reporters. “He’s always in the right place and he’s a baller.”

• Michigan has won five of the last six meetings with Iowa.

• Simpson leads the nation in assists per game (8.9).

• Garza has scored 20 or more points in 11 games this season.