Sacred Heart Pioneers vs Merrimack Warriors Prediction, 2/1/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Sacred Heart Pioneers vs Merrimack Warriors

Date: Sunday, February 1, 2026

Location: Hammel Court in North Andover, MA

TV: ESPN+

The Merrimack Warriors (13-9) will compete against the Sacred Heart Pioneers (9-13) at Hammel Court on Sunday.

The Sacred Heart Pioneers faced off with Niagara and took home the win by a score of 71-70 in their last contest. Sacred Heart walked away from the contest with a 46.3% field goal percentage (25 of 54) and knocked down 10 out of their 27 three-point shots. At the charity stripe, the Pioneers made 11 of 16 tries for a rate of 68.8%. In the matter of grabbing boards, they compiled a total of 18 with 2 of them being on the offensive end. They also doled out 17 assists in this matchup as well as creating 13 turnovers and getting 7 steals. Pertaining to defense, Sacred Heart allowed the other team to go 58.5% from the floor on 31 out of 53 shooting. Niagara earned 19 dimes and had 7 steals for this game. On top of that, Niagara had 32 rebounds (5 offensive, 27 defensive), but didn't record a block for the team. Niagara shot 14.3% from the free throw line by burying 1 of their 7 shots. They knocked down 7 of their 18 attempts from distance. Concerning personal fouls, the Pioneers ended up walking away with 13 and Niagara finished the game with 13 personal fouls.

Anquan Hill is someone who was a factor for the matchup. He was able to score 19 points on 7 of 12 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 37 minutes and snagged 4 rebounds. He finished the contest at 58.3% from the field and also recorded 2 dimes.

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Sacred Heart heads into this one with a record of 9-13 so far this year. They are losing possession via turnover 12.7 times per game and as a squad they are committing 15.4 fouls per game. As a team, Sacred Heart is pulling down 35.0 rebounds per game and has accumulated 335 assists for the season, which has them ranked 86th in Division 1 in terms of passing. The Pioneers are connecting on 36.4% on three-point attempts (239 of 657) and 76.6% from the free throw line. They are averaging 75.5 points per contest (204th in the country) while hitting 43.6% from the field.

On the defensive end, the Pioneers have forced 11.5 turnovers on a nightly basis and they draw 15.2 fouls. They relinquish 35.8% from 3-point land and they are 257th in the nation in points per game from their opponents (76.5). The Pioneers are allowing a shooting percentage of 46.5% (608 of 1,307) and they concede 34.5 boards per game as a group. They currently rank 353rd in D-1 in giving up assists to the opposition with 375 conceded so far this season.

The last time they took the court, the Merrimack Warriors went home victorious with a score of 67-59 when they faced St. Peter's. The Warriors collected 16 defensive boards and 5 offensive boards totaling 21 in this matchup. They also gave up possession 9 times, while recording 11 steals in this matchup. St. Peter's was called for 20 personal fouls for this contest which took the Warriors to the charity stripe for a total of 25 tries. They were able to make 22 of the free throw tries for a rate of 88.0%. With respect to shots from beyond the perimeter, Merrimack made 7 of 16 attempts (43.8%). When this game wrapped up, the Warriors finished 19 out of 47 from the field which gave them a percentage of 40.4%. The Warriors allowed St. Peter's to bury 19 out of their 64 attempts from the field which gave them a rate of 29.7% for the game. They shot 18.2% from behind the 3-point line by shooting 4 of 22 and finished the contest at 17 out of 24 from the charity stripe (70.8%). With respect to cleaning up the glass, Merrimack allowed St. Peter's to collect 44 in all (25 on the offensive glass).

Ernest Shelton pitched in for the Warriors in the matchup. He accumulated 21 points in his 40 mins on the hardwood and accumulated 2 assists in the matchup. He converted 4 of 8 for the contest for a field goal percentage of 50.0%, and added 3 rebounds.

Merrimack has a win-loss mark of 13-9 so far this season. On the offensive side of the court, the Warriors are connecting on 41.0% from the field, which is ranked 340th in college. Merrimack has scored 1,474 points this season (67.0 per contest) and they grab 28.2 boards per game. They are dishing out assists 11.8 times per game (324th in the nation) and they are turning it over 10.2 times per game. The Warriors are committing 17.4 fouls every game while shooting 76.9% from the free throw line.

The Warriors on the defensive end are ranked 63rd in the country in points allowed per contest with 69.1. They are forcing 12.6 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 42.8% from the floor (131st in college). The Merrimack defense surrenders 30.0% on shots from beyond the perimeter (119 of 397) and opponents are connecting on 72.7% of their shots from the charity stripe. They have allowed 13.2 dimes and 39.5 boards every game, which is ranked 169th and 354th in Division 1.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Sacred Heart

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