Merrimack Warriors vs Canisius Griffins Prediction, 2/27/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Merrimack Warriors vs Canisius Golden Griffins

Date: Friday, February 27, 2026

Location: Koessler Athletic Center in Buffalo, NY

TV: ESPN+

Koessler Athletic Center is the location where the Canisius Golden Griffins (9-20) will try to defeat the Merrimack Warriors (20-9) on Friday.

The Merrimack Warriors took the court against Iona and walked away with a win by a score of 88-86 in their last game. Merrimack walked away from the game having earned a 41.3% FG percentage (26 of 63) and made 11 out of their 33 three-point attempts. From the charity stripe, the Warriors converted 25 of 28 attempts for a rate of 89.3%. When talking about pulling down rebounds, they collected 29 with 5 of them being offensive. They also dished out 18 assists in the game as well as forcing the other team into 11 turnovers and getting 9 steals. With regard to defending, Merrimack allowed the other team to shoot 44.1% from the field on 30 of 68 shooting. Iona totaled 17 dimes and had 2 steals in this game. In addition, Iona grabbed 40 rebounds (10 offensive, 30 defensive), but wasn't able to put a block in the stat sheet. Iona ended up shooting 75.0% at the charity stripe by making 12 of 16 attempts. They buried 14 out of their 34 tries from downtown. In relation to fouls, the Warriors left the arena with 15 while Iona recorded 19 fouls.

Kevair Kennedy is a guy who was a contributor in the matchup. He finished with 20 points on 6 out of 16 shooting. He saw the court for 50 mins and also pulled down 6 rebounds. He went 37.5% from the field and totaled 7 dimes.

Get all of our NCAA Parlay Picks

Merrimack comes into this matchup with a win-loss record of 20-9 for the campaign. They are turning it over 9.8 times per game and as a squad they are committing 16.8 fouls per contest. As a unit, Merrimack is pulling down 28.9 boards per contest and has racked up 358 dimes this year, which ranks 267th in the country in terms of passing the rock. The Warriors are shooting 32.7% on 3-point shots (231 of 706) and 78.8% from the free throw line. They have an average of 69.4 pts per contest (321st in the country) while shooting 42.0% from the field.

When they are on defense, the Warriors have forced 12.7 turnovers every game and they draw 17.1 personal fouls. They currently rank 172nd in college hoops in giving up assists with 372 conceded for the season. The Warriors defense is allowing a FG percentage of 41.8% (678 of 1,623) and they surrender 38.8 boards per contest as a group. They are giving up 29.6% from beyond the arc and they rank 36th in D-1 in points per game allowed (67.5).

For their last game, the Canisius Golden Griffins took a loss by a final score of 68-47 when they faced Mount St. Mary's. When talking about rebounds, Canisius permitted Mount St. Mary's to snag 32 in all (11 on the offensive glass). They shot 31.8% from three-point range by going 7 of 22 and walked away from this one shooting 11 out of 14 from the free throw line (78.6%). The Griffins permitted Mount St. Mary's to bury 25 of 55 attempts from the field which had them at 45.5% in this contest. When this game wrapped up, the Griffins walked away from this one shooting 16 out of 45 from the field which gave them a percentage of 35.6%. In regard to 3-point shots, Canisius made 4 of their 18 tries (22.2%). They were able to knock down 11 of the free throw attempts for a clip of 78.6%. Mount St. Mary's had 15 personal fouls in this game which took the Griffins to the charity stripe for 14 attempts. They turned the ball over 17 times, while getting 8 steals in this game. The Griffins pulled down 19 defensive rebounds and 5 offensive boards totaling 24 in the matchup.

Kahlil Singleton pitched in for the Griffins for this game. He buried 6 of 14 in this game for a field goal rate of 42.9%, and accumulated 4 rebounds. He totaled 15 points in his 37 minutes on the court and had 1 assist in the matchup.

Canisius has a mark of 9-20 this year. The Griffins have committed 17.5 fouls per game and they hit 71.1% from the free throw line. They are dishing out assists 11.9 times per contest (320th in the nation) and they are giving up possession 12.9 times per contest. Canisius has accounted for 1,821 points on the season (62.8 per game) and they grab 33.3 rebounds per contest. As an offensive team, the Griffins are connecting on 40.0% from the field, which is 359th in college hoops.

The Canisius defense surrenders 33.2% on shots from behind the 3-point line (232 of 699) and their opposition knocks down 72.1% of their free throw attempts. They have surrendered 14.0 dimes and 34.1 total rebounds per game, which is 238th and 161st in college hoops. The Griffins are ranked 99th in D-1 in PPG allowed with 70.9. They are able to force 10.9 turnovers per game and allow teams to shoot 45.1% from the floor (246th in the nation).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Merrimack

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here

Get college basketball picks on every single game, or if you want our very best bets by the experts, sign up for your free $60 account with a guarantee.