Mercer Bears vs Washington State Cougars Prediction, 12/20/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Mercer Bears vs Washington State Cougars

Date: Saturday, December 20, 2025

Location: Beasley Coliseum in Pullman, WA

TV: ESPN+

The Mercer Bears (7-3) are en route to Beasley Coliseum on Saturday where they will take on the Washington State Cougars (3-8).

The Mercer Bears faced UCF and took a loss by a final of 81-63 in their last contest. Mercer finished having earned a 37.7% FG percentage (20 of 53) and made 5 out of their 18 shots from beyond the perimeter. At the free throw line, the Bears knocked down 18 of 24 shots for a rate of 75.0%. In reference to rebounding, they compiled 32 with 8 of them being on the offensive end. They also doled out 7 dimes for this contest in addition to forcing the other team into 12 turnovers and getting 7 steals. In reference to defending, Mercer allowed their opponent to shoot 44.1% from the field on 30 of 68 shooting. UCF dished out 13 dimes and had 10 steals in this matchup. Moreover, UCF grabbed 39 rebounds (16 offensive, 23 defensive), but wasn't able to put a block in the stat sheet. UCF finished 76.5% at the charity stripe by knocking down 13 of their 17 tries. They also made 8 of 24 attempts from distance. Concerning personal fouls, the Bears ended up with 14 while UCF recorded 19 personal fouls.

Brady Shoulders is one guy who played a role for this game. He accounted for 14 points on 5 out of 7 shooting. He saw the court for 32 mins and snagged 6 boards. He went 71.4% from the field and also dished out 1 assist.

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Mercer comes into this game with a record of 7-3 so far this season. They turn it over 10.3 times per game and as a group are committing 15.2 personal fouls per contest. As a team, Mercer is pulling in 38.1 rebounds per contest and has accounted for 150 dimes on the season, which has them ranked 236th in college hoops in terms of passing the rock. The Bears are connecting on 33.6% on 3-pointers (94 of 280) and 69.6% from the charity stripe. They average 82.5 pts per game (100th in Division 1) while shooting 45.4% from the floor.

On the defensive end of the court, the Bears have forced 14.6 turnovers on a nightly basis and they draw 18.2 personal fouls. They are ranked 139th in the country in giving up assists with 138 surrendered this season. The Bears defense is allowing an opponent shooting percentage of 42.5% (276 of 649) and they relinquish 40.1 boards per game as a group. They relinquish 30.8% on 3-point attempts and they are ranked 211th in the country in PPG from their opponents (74.1).

In their last game, the Washington State Cougars walked away with a victory by a final of 78-63 against Eastern Washington. Regarding rebounding, Washington State allowed Eastern Washington to grab 19 in all (4 offensive). They shot 21.7% from 3-point land by shooting 5 out of 23 and finished the contest at 12 of 18 at the free throw line (66.7%). The Cougars permitted Eastern Washington to knock down 23 of 60 tries from the floor which had them sitting at 38.3% for the contest. Overall, the Cougars went 32 for 62 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 51.6%. When talking about shots from distance, Washington State made 9 of their 28 tries (32.1%). They were able to make 5 of the free throw attempts for a percentage of 55.6%. Eastern Washington earned 16 personal fouls for the matchup which took the Cougars to the charity stripe for 9 tries. They coughed up the ball 14 times, while recording 10 steals for the game. The Cougars were able to snag 29 defensive boards and 9 offensive rebounds totaling 38 in this contest.

Emmanuel Ugbo ended up being a factor for the Cougars for the matchup. He earned 20 points in his 24 minutes of playing time, but didn't record an assist. He made 8 of 12 for this contest giving him a field goal percentage of 66.7%, and accounted for 4 rebounds.

Washington State has a mark of 3-8 for the season. As an offense, the Cougars are hitting on 46.1% from the floor, which is 151st in college. Washington State has scored 828 points for the year (75.3 per game) and they snag 33.4 rebounds per game. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 12.0 times per contest (318th in college) and they turn it over 13.3 times per contest. The Cougars are committing 19.0 fouls every game and they hit 76.6% from the charity stripe.

The Washington State defense surrenders 36.2% on shots from behind the 3-point line (89 of 246) and opponents are converting on 75.7% of their free throw shots. They concede 12.8 assists and 29.6 rebounds on a nightly basis, which has them ranked 144th and 11th in those categories on the defensive end. The Cougars defensively are ranked 294th in D-1 in points given up per game with 78.5. They are able to force 10.5 turnovers per game and allow teams to shoot 48.2% from the floor (344th in the country).

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Mercer

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