Furman vs Mercer 3/5/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds
Mercer Bears (16-16) vs. Furman Paladins (20-11)
March 5, 2022 6:00 pm EDT
The Line: Furman Paladins -7 ; Over/Under: 139.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Mercer Bears and the Furman Paladins meet Saturday in Southern Conference Tournament college basketball action from US Cellular Center. Mercer is 16-16 this year and coming off a Friday tournament win over Western Carolina. As for Furman, they’re sitting at 20-11 and coming off a win over the Citadel. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.
Mercer was sitting at 12-8 back in late January, but they’ve been on a choppy run since then. The Bears had a three-game losing streak going versus Western Carolina, the Citadel and Wofford before the victory over Western Carolina.
In the Friday tournament matchup versus the Catamounts, the Bears got off to a 43-25 lead by halftime. Mercer cruised on 38 second-half points in the 81-53 win. Tops in scoring was Kamar Robertson with 16 points and 11 boards.
Over on the Furman side, they’ve had a couple of rough patches this year but overall have done quite well for themselves. The Paladins are 3-1 in their last four games, taking wins over Western Carolina, Wofford and the Citadel in that stretch.
In the matchup last weekend versus the Citadel, the Paladins jumped out to a 41-29 halftime lead. Furman kept it up with a 53-30 second half in a 94-59 blowout win. Tops in scoring was Alex Hunter with 20 points and six assists.
The Paladins are 0-4 ATS in their last four neutral-site games and 2-5 ATS in their last seven games overall. Meanwhile, the Bears are 7-3 ATS in their last 10 overall and 5-2 ATS in their last seven neutral-site games.
PICK: I’m likely going to stay with Furman here. The Paladins had some rough scoring outings during their recent three-game losing streak (58 or fewer points in two of those), but they’ve gotten better lately. Furman has hit 70 or more points in each of the last four games, going 3-1 in that time.
As for Mercer, they put up a nice effort against Western Carolina on Friday, but they’ve lost 81-66 and 80-50 in the two matchups versus Furman this year. The Bears may fare better here but I still think it’s Furman’s cover.
