SMU Mustangs vs Florida State Seminoles Prediction, 3/8/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: SMU Mustangs vs Florida State Seminoles

Date: Saturday, March 8, 2025

Location: Tucker Center in St. Louis, MO

TV: ESPN+

Tucker Center is the location where the Florida State Seminoles (16-14) will attempt to beat the SMU Mustangs (22-8) on Saturday.

The SMU Mustangs faced off with Syracuse and notched a win by a score of 77-75 in their last game. When discussing personal fouls, the Mustangs walked away with 18 and Syracuse totaled 21 personal fouls. They knocked down 9 of 22 shots from distance. Syracuse walked away from this one shooting 73.7% from the charity stripe by making 14 of 19 tries. Moreover, Syracuse grabbed 32 boards (10 offensive, 22 defensive), but finished the game with no rejections. Syracuse distributed 19 assists and had 1 steal for this contest. In regard to defending, SMU allowed the other team to go 48.1% from the field on 26 out of 54 shooting. They also distributed 16 assists for the matchup in addition to forcing the other team into 12 turnovers and earning 12 steals. Regarding hauling in rebounds, they collected 26 with 10 of them being on the offensive end. When they shot from the free throw line, the Mustangs converted 13 of 27 attempts for a rate of 48.1%. SMU wrapped up the game with a 53.6% FG percentage (30 of 56) and made 4 of 11 shots from distance.

Kario Oquendo is one player who was a major factor for the matchup. He finished the game at 54.5% from the floor and also earned 1 assist. He was on the court for 30 mins played and totaled 4 boards. He ended up scoring 16 points on 6 out of 11 shooting.

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SMU enters this one with a record of 22-8 so far this year. They are giving up possession 11.8 times per contest and as a group they commit 16.7 personal fouls per contest. As a unit, SMU is pulling in 39.0 boards per contest and has tallied 479 assists for the year, which has them ranked 53rd in D-1 in terms of passing the ball. The Mustangs are shooting 38.4% on three-point shots (242 of 631) and 71.9% from the free throw line. They currently have an average of 81.5 points per contest (26th in the nation) on 48.4% from the floor.

On the defensive end, the Mustangs have forced 12.1 turnovers per game while drawing 18.3 personal fouls. They are currently ranked 330th in the country in giving up assists to their opponents with 465 relinquished on the season. The Mustangs defense is giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 41.1% (742 of 1,804) and they surrender 33.0 boards per game as a team. They are conceding 33.5% on shots from distance and they are 184th in college in PPG allowed (72.0).

For their last game, the Florida State Seminoles went home defeated by a final of 60-57 when they played Virginia. The Seminoles corralled 21 defensive rebounds and 12 offensive boards for a total of 33 in the matchup. They also gave up possession of the ball 8 times, while earning 7 steals in this contest. Virginia was called for 12 fouls in this contest which got the Seminoles to the charity stripe for a total of 7 shots. They were able to bury 4 of the free throws for a percentage of 57.1%. In terms of shooting from beyond the arc, Florida State knocked down 7 out of their 22 attempts (31.8%). When the final whistle blew, the Seminoles finished shooting 23 for 62 from the field which gave them a rate of 37.1%. The Seminoles permitted Virginia to knock down 21 of their 53 attempts from the floor which gave them a percentage of 39.6% for the matchup. They finished the game shooting 45.8% from 3-point land by connecting on 11 of 24 and ended up shooting 7 out of 9 from the free throw line (77.8%). In reference to cleaning the glass, Florida State permitted Virginia to grab 26 in total (6 on the offensive side).

Jamir Watkins was important for the Seminoles in the matchup. He racked up 18 points in his 34 minutes on the court and tallied 5 dimes for the matchup. He converted 7 of 18 in this game for a field goal rate of 38.9%, and added 8 rebounds.

Florida State has a win-loss record of 16-14 on the year. On the offensive side of the court, the Seminoles are shooting 45.4% from the floor, which is 143rd in college hoops. Florida State has totaled 2,245 points this season (74.8 per game) and they average 34.7 boards per contest. They are earning an assist 13.3 times per game (213th in college) and they turn it over 12.3 times per contest. The Seminoles have committed 19.1 fouls per contest and they go 71.7% from the charity stripe.

The Florida State defense allows 32.4% on shots from behind the 3-point line (242 of 747) and opponents are making 73.4% of their free throw attempts. They concede 12.6 assists and 35.5 rebounds per contest, which has them ranked 130th and 250th in college hoops. The Seminoles on the defensive end are ranked 207th in the country in points given up per game with 72.8. They have forced 13.5 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 41.7% from the field (66th in college).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Florida State

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