Rider Broncs vs Merrimack Warriors Prediction, 12/4/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Rider Broncs vs Merrimack Warriors

Date: Thursday, December 4, 2025

Location: Hammel Court in North Andover, MA

TV: ESPN+

Hammel Court is the location where the Merrimack Warriors (3-6) will play the Rider Broncs (1-5) on Thursday.

The Rider Broncs played Coppin State and ended up losing by a score of 68-65 in their last contest. Rider ended the game having earned a 30.0% FG percentage (18 out of 60) and made 5 of 18 3-pointers. At the charity stripe, the Broncs made 24 of their 32 attempts for a rate of 75.0%. When discussing rebounding, they collected 41 with 17 of them being of the offensive sort. They also doled out 9 dimes for the game in addition to forcing the other team into 16 turnovers and earning 10 steals. In terms of defending, Rider allowed their opponent to shoot 42.2% from the field on 27 of 64 shooting. Coppin State doled out 14 assists and had 10 steals in this game. On top of that, Coppin State snagged 43 rebounds (17 offensive, 26 defensive), but didn't notch a block. Coppin State walked away from this one shooting 50.0% at the charity stripe by burying 9 of 18 attempts. They also knocked down 5 out of their 11 attempts from beyond the arc. In the matter of personal fouls, the Broncs ended up finishing with 17 while Coppin State accounted for 22 personal fouls.

Zion Cruz is one player who was a factor in the game. He walked away with 18 points on 4 of 12 shooting. He played for 38 minutes and also totaled 4 rebounds. He finished the contest at 33.3% from the field and also dished out 1 assist.

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Rider heads into this matchup with a record of 1-5 this year. They currently have an average of 61.2 points per outing (360th in D-1) while going 35.0% from the floor. The Broncs are connecting on 24.0% on shots from beyond the arc (25 of 104) and 73.5% from the charity stripe. As a team, Rider is snagging 39.5 boards per game and has totaled 50 dimes this season, which is 364th in D-1 in terms of passing. They are turning it over 15.3 times per contest and as a group are committing 19.8 fouls every game.

Defensively, the Broncs are able to force 9.5 turnovers per contest while drawing 19.3 personal fouls. They are currently ranked 65th in the nation in giving up assists to the opposition with 88 surrendered so far this season. Broncs defensively are allowing a FG percentage of 43.8% (168 of 384) and they surrender 41.8 rebounds per game as a group. They concede 33.3% on 3-point shots while they are 301st in college hoops in points per game allowed (80.0).

When they last stepped on the hardwood, the Merrimack Warriors went home victorious with a score of 66-60 when they played La Salle. In the matter of cleaning the glass, Merrimack allowed La Salle to collect 31 in total (13 on the offensive side). They shot 26.7% from distance by going 4 of 15 and walked away from this one shooting 14 of 18 at the free throw line (77.8%). The Warriors permitted La Salle to make 21 out of their 52 attempts from the floor which had them shooting 40.4% in the game. When the final whistle blew, the Warriors finished the game shooting 24 for 57 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 42.1%. With respect to three-point shots, Merrimack knocked down 10 of their 28 attempts (35.7%). They were able to knock down 8 of the free throws for a percentage of 72.7%. La Salle had 14 fouls for this game which got the Warriors to the free throw line for a total of 11 shots. They also gave up possession of the ball 10 times, while getting 11 steals for this game. The Warriors were able to pull down 12 defensive rebounds and 6 offensive rebounds for a total of 18 in this contest.

Ernest Shelton ended up being a major contributor for the Warriors in this contest. He made 6 out of 14 for the matchup for a field goal percentage of 42.9%, and had 2 rebounds. He accumulated 17 points in his 32 mins on the court and totaled 1 assist for the contest.

Merrimack has a win-loss record of 3-6 so far this year. The Warriors are responsible for committing 19.0 personal fouls every game and they go 76.3% from the charity stripe. They are earning an assist 11.9 times per game (314th in college) and they turn it over 11.0 times per game. Merrimack has earned 582 pts this year (64.7 per game) and they grab 28.7 rebounds per game. In terms of offensive execution, the Warriors are connecting on 36.7% from the field, which is ranked 361st in the nation.

The Merrimack defense concedes 32.7% on shots from behind the 3-point line (54 of 165) and their opponents are converting on 71.9% of their free throw attempts. They have surrendered 15.4 dimes and 42.2 rebounds on a nightly basis, which is 295th and 356th in college. The Warriors on defense are ranked 231st in D-1 in PPG given up with 76.1. They are forcing 13.6 turnovers per game and allow teams to shoot 47.1% from the floor (316th in college hoops).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Rider

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