Mercer Bears take on the Western Carolina Catamounts in SoCon Tournament

By Canadian Press on March 7, 2025.

Western Carolina Catamounts (8-21, 4-14 SoCon) vs. Mercer Bears (13-18, 6-12 SoCon)

Asheville, North Carolina; Friday, 5 p.m. EST

BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Bears -7.5; over/under is 153.5

BOTTOM LINE: Mercer plays in the SoCon Tournament against Western Carolina.

The Bears’ record in SoCon play is 6-12, and their record is 7-6 against non-conference opponents. Mercer is the top team in the SoCon averaging 34.2 points in the paint. Alex Holt leads the Bears with 9.7.

The Catamounts’ record in SoCon action is 4-14. Western Carolina is 3-0 in one-possession games.

Mercer’s average of 8.5 made 3-pointers per game this season is just 0.9 fewer made shots on average than the 9.4 per game Western Carolina gives up. Western Carolina averages 69.8 points per game, 5.8 fewer points than the 75.6 Mercer gives up to opponents.

TOP PERFORMERS: Holt is averaging 10.8 points and 6.9 rebounds for the Bears. Tyler Johnson is averaging 3.0 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.

Bernard Pelote is scoring 14.3 points per game with 7.4 rebounds and 1.3 assists for the Catamounts. Marcus Kell is averaging 19.1 points and 8.3 rebounds over the past 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Bears: 3-7, averaging 71.4 points, 37.5 rebounds, 11.7 assists, 6.8 steals and 3.2 blocks per game while shooting 42.3% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 75.0 points per game.

Catamounts: 2-8, averaging 72.7 points, 36.0 rebounds, 13.0 assists, 4.3 steals and 3.3 blocks per game while shooting 40.2% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 81.7 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

The Associated Press