Western Carolina Catamounts vs Mercer Bears Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 03/04/2022

Game Time: 7:30 pm ET, Friday, March 4, 2022

Venue:  Harrah's Cherokee Center - Asheville, Asheville, NC

Where to Watch:  ESPN+

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  WCU +5.5, Mercer -5.5; Over/Under:  142.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  WCU +5.5, Mercer -5.5; Over/Under:  142.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  WCU +5.5, Mercer -5.5; Over/Under:  142.5 points

 

Western Carolina Catamounts:  11-20 (10th place, Southern)

Mercer Bears:  15-16 (7th place, Southern)

 

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Western Carolina Catamounts:  2-3 last 5

Mercer Bears:  2-3 last 5

 

 

 

WCU is coming into this game with an 11-20 record overall and they are 1-1 in their neutral site games this season where they will be in this game. This will be their first game of the Southern Conference Tournament and they are 5-13 against conference opponents this season. They have won 2 of their last 3 games and are coming into this one off of a win in their last game. Their last loss was against the UNC Greensboro Spartans while their 2 wins in that span came against the Mercer Bears and the VMI Keydets in their last game. Marlow Gilmore led the team in points in that game with 25 while Cameron Bacote was next on the team with 23 points. Bacote led the team in assists in that game with 7 while Gilmore led the team in rebounds with 14. They are 40.3% from the field, 32.2% from 3-point range, and 67.5% from the free throw line with their shooting this season. Their offense is averaging 71.2 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 77.1 PPG against them. WCU has an ATS record of 17-12-1 this season and their O/U record is 16-14.

 

 

Mercer is coming into this game with a 15-16 record overall and they are 1-1 in their neutral site games this season where they will be in this game. This will be their first matchup of the Southern Conference Tournament and they are 8-10 against conference opponents this season. Their last win was against the East Tennessee State Buccaneers but they have gone on a 3 game losing streak since then with losses coming against the Western Carolina Catamounts, the Citadel Bulldogs, and the Wofford Terriers in their last game. Kamar Robertson led the team in points in that game with 18 while Felipe Haase was next on the team with 15 points. Shawn Walker Jr. led the team in assists in that game with 6 while Jalen Johnson and Shannon Grant off the bench both led the team in rebounds with 4 each. They are 45.1% from the field, 34.7% from 3-point range, and 77.4% from the free throw line with their shots this season. Their offense is averaging 70.3 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 70.8 PPG against them. Mercer has an ATS record of 15-14 this season and their O/U record is 15-14.

 

WCU is coming into this game off of a win in their last game and they have won 2 of their last 3 games but that does not change the fact that they are still the team at the bottom of the Southern Conference. Both of those wins came at home though and they have actually lost their last 11 straight games on the road, losing all of their road games to conference opponents as well. They are not technically on the road here as this is a neutral site game but that does not change the fact that they have been awful away from their own building. They are going up against a Mercer side that has been much better against conference opponents this season but, they have also struggled on the road this season and Mercer just lost to WCU on the road a few weeks ago. Mercer has been a more consistent team this season but they have lost their last 3 straight games coming into this one and they really have no confidence coming into this game. All 3 of those losses were close in score though and this game will likely be the same here but Mercer is the better team here and they will likely be seeking their revenge on WCU for starting this current losing streak that they are on. This will be a closer game within single digits but Mercer should edge out WCU here and move on.

 

Western Carolina Mercer Prediction:  Our NCAAB Pick for Friday, March 4, 2022 (7:30 pm ET start time) is Mercer 70 WCU 67.

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Western Carolina Catamounts: 18-23 ATS when the total is 140 to 149.5. 12-26 ATS as a neutral court underdog or pick. 33-24 UNDER against conference opponents.

Mercer Bears: 25-17 ATS after playing a game as an underdog. 24-13 UNDER when the total is 140 to 149.5. 25-15 UNDER as a favorite.

 

 

Western Carolina Catamounts:  None.

Mercer Bears:  None.

 

 

“Wasn’t where we wanted to finish. Obviously, we have expectations to win the conference regular season. But now we’ve got an opportunity to start 0-0 right now. Because we have to win four, it’s really about the first one. Learned a lot about our team, had some ups and downs and had some injuries. Everybody kind of goes through that.” - Greg Gary on the Southern Conference tournament.

 

 

“In tournament play, you got to bring the energy. You can’t think about the next game because there is no next game if you lose. So you got to take care of the first game with a lot of energy and togetherness and be fully committed on the defensive end. And with that, just take it step-by-step and that’s our biggest focus.” - Felipe Haase on the upcoming tournament.

 

 

 

C. Bacote 

T. Harris 

J. Petrakis 

N. Robinson 

V. Woolbright

 

J. Glisson 

F. Haase 

J. Johnson  

J. Jones 

S. Walker

 

 

PPG: N. Robinson (14.8)

APG: V. Woolbright (3.9)

Reb/G: N. Robinson (7.1)

 

PPG: F. Haase (14.9)

APG: N. Alvarez (3.4)

Reb/G: F. Haase (5.6)

 

Coaches:

Western Carolina Catamounts: Justin Gray (1st season)

Mercer Bears: Greg Gary (3rd season)