It will be a battle between Southern opponents when the Samford Bulldogs (11-11) welcome the Mercer Bears (16-6) to Pete Hanna Center. The game gets underway at 8:00 pm ET on Monday, Feb. 1.
The Bulldogs lost to Chattanooga 63-56 on Saturday. Christen Cunningham was the team’s high scorer, contributing 15 points. The Bears are coming off an 81-67 win over UNC Greensboro on Saturday. Jestin Lewis led the game in scoring with 23 points on 7-for-16 shooting.
Lewis has been on fire over the last five games for the Bears, averaging 19.2 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.8 steals, and 2.6 three-pointers.
It could be a sloppy game for the Mercer offense, which ranks 276th in the nation in ball security (TO% of 20.1%). It’ll be facing the gambling Samford defense, which forces the 24th-most turnovers in the nation (22.1%).
This will be the second matchup of the season between these two teams. The Bears won the first game 69-50. Phillip Leonard was a standout player in the game, producing 15 points, five rebounds, five assists, two steals, and one three-pointer.
Samford is a small underdog, with Mercer favored by one. The Over/Under (O/U) is 134 points. The Bulldogs look to improve upon their records of 11-11 Straight Up (SU) and 9-9 Against The Spread (ATS). They are 2-7 ATS over their last 10 games.
On the other side, Mercer has a SU record of 16-6 and an ATS record of 10-7. Mercer is one of the better rebounding teams in Division I. The Bears average 41.0 rebounds per game, making them the 26th-best team in the country for that category. The Mercer defense as a whole has been firing on all cylinders so far, ranking 40th in Division I with only 65.3 points allowed per game. Mercer’s defense is one of the top in the nation, with opponents shooting only .386 from the field.
Mercer won the last meeting this season between these two teams, moving its SU record against the Bulldogs to 5-2. Additionally, with a 2-1 record, Mercer has the advantage ATS.
Predictions: SU Winner – Sam, ATS Winner – Sam, O/U – Over
Notes
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Samford’s last 6 games.
Samford is 6-3 SU in its last 9 games at home.
Samford is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Mercer.
Samford averages 73.3 points per game, placing the team just 181st in the nation. Mercer ranks 40th in points allowed, giving up 65.3 points per game.
The Mercer Bears have a defensive rating of 97.3 (ranked 62nd), while the Samford Bulldogs have an offensive rating of 104.4 (ranked 201st).
Samford has an average field goal percentage of 44.6%. Mercer is undefeated (2-0) when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
The Samford Bulldogs and the Mercer Bears both rank higher in average field goal percentage when compared to their effective field goal percentages. Samford is 195th and 136th in the nation for eFG% and FG% respectively, while Mercer ranks 144th and 104th in these categories.
Mercer ranks 78th in assists, recording 15.3 per game. Samford performs worse at 161st with 13.6 assists per game.
Samford ranks 207th in offensive rebounds, while Mercer ranks 16th in defensive rebounds.
Samford records 7.3 steals per game. Mercer is 5-4 when giving up at least 7 steals.
