Eighth-seeded Clemson and No. 9 seed Iowa will meet in the first round of the 2026 NCAA Tournament on Friday (6:50 p.m., TNT) at the Benchmark International Arena in Tampa, Fla.

ESPN college basketball analyst Jay Bilas predicted every single game of the NCAA Tourney, and he picked the Hawkeyes to beat the Tigers.

“The Tigers are big and well-coached, but the Hawkeyes have Bennett Stirtz, one of the best shotmakers in college basketball, who is averaging 20.2 points, 3.4 rebounds and 5.1 assists. Take Iowa. Neither beats Florida, anyway,” Bilas wrote.

Indeed, Bilas picked No. 1 seed Florida to beat Iowa in the second round, and he has the Gators making it all the way to the Final Four before falling to third-seeded Michigan State.

Along with Florida and Michigan State, Bilas has No. 1 seed Arizona and No. 2 seed Iowa State as the other Final Four teams, with the Wildcats beating the Cyclones.

Bilas picked Arizona to beat Michigan State in the national championship game.

Bilas’ fellow ESPN analyst Jeff Borzello predicted Clemson to beat Iowa, 64-62, and then fall to Florida, 76-63, in the second round.

Clemson enters the tournament with a 24-10 record, including a 12-6 mark in regular-season ACC games. Iowa comes in with a 21-12 overall record, including a 10-10 mark in Big Ten play.

Iowa is a 2.5-point favorite entering the matchup against Clemson, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.

This marks the sixth time under head coach Brad Brownell and third consecutive season that the Tigers have advanced to the NCAA Tournament. The Tigers will be making their 16th tournament appearance overall. All have taken place since 1980.

Clemson holds a 14-15 record in the NCAA Tournament that includes two Elite Eight appearances and five trips to the Sweet 16.