Indiana vs. Iowa Big Ten college basketball injury report, odds: Trayce Jackson-Davis trending toward return, Patrick McCaffrey out

It's a bit of a watered-down schedule around college basketball tonight, but there's an intriguing matchup from the Big Ten as No. 16 Indiana visits sliding Iowa. There could be good injury news for the Hoosiers involving star big man Trayce Jackson-Davis, while the Hawkeyes will be without sharpshooter Patrick McCaffrey for a while. Iowa is -1.5 at Caesars Sportsbook.

The John R. Wooden Award announced the midseason watch list for its 2023 Player of the Year on Wednesday, and Jackson-Davis and Iowa's Kris Murray were two of four Big Ten players on it along with Michigan's Hunter Dickinson and Purdue's Zach Edey, who is the current betting favorite for the No. 1 Boilermakers (they also play tonight at No. 24 Ohio State).

Jackson-Davis was named to an All-Big Ten team in each of his first three seasons and surely will make it again this year. The senior is averaging 16.4 points on 63.4% shooting along with 8.2 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 2.7 blocks. He is one of two players nationally to average at least 16.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game on at least 60.0% shooting from the floor. Jackson-Davis is the only active player in the country with at least 1,700 career points, 800 career rebounds and 200 career blocks.

Jackson-Davis has missed the past two games (and one in November) with an undisclosed injury, believed to be back troubles, but did return to practice this week and is trending toward a return. Indiana (10-3) will have had 12 days off between games overall when it takes the court tonight. Jackson-Davis hasn't played since a blowout loss at Kansas on Dec. 17.

Iowa (8-6) was ranked at one point but enters having lost three straight games, a streak that began with a shocking 92-83 home loss to Eastern Illinois which the Hawkeyes entered as 31.5-point favorites. It marked the largest upset in at least three decades. Previous 30+ point underdogs in college basketball in that span were 0-558 before the game.

The Hawkeyes will be without McCaffrey, the son of head coach Fran McCaffery, for an indefinite period as he has taken a leave of absence while battling anxiety, saying that it reached the point where it inhibited his preparation and performance. Patrick McCaffery had started all 14 games and is the Hawkeyes' third-leading scorer, averaging 12.8 points. But in the past two games, conference losses to Nebraska and Penn State, he was just 2-for-15 from the field.

Iowa is looking to avoid its first four-game losing streak since dropping its last four of the 2018-19 regular season. Led by Murray, who has three 30-point games this season, Iowa ranks second in the Big Ten and 26th nationally in scoring offense (81.1).

Tonight is the 40th anniversary of the first men's basketball game played in Carver-Hawkeye Arena (Jan. 5, 1983 vs. Michigan State). Iowa has won 10 of its past 15 there vs. Indiana. 

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