SMU Mustangs vs Notre Dame Fighting Irish Prediction, 2/19/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: SMU Mustangs vs Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Date: Wednesday, February 19, 2025

Location: Purcell Pavilion in Tallahassee, FL

TV: ESPN+

The SMU Mustangs (19-5) are hitting the road to Purcell Pavilion on Wednesday where they will try to beat the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (11-13).

The SMU Mustangs took the court against Pittsburgh and went home with a win by a final score of 83-63 in their last game. SMU walked away from the game having earned a 55.8% field goal percentage (29 of 52) and converted 10 out of their 20 shots from distance. At the free throw line, the Mustangs converted 15 of 23 attempts for a percentage of 65.2%. When discussing grabbing boards, they collected a total of 37 with 9 of them being of the offensive variety. They also dished out 18 assists for this game while forcing the other team into 11 turnovers and earning 9 steals. When discussing the defense, SMU allowed the other team to shoot 31.8% from the field on 21 of 66 shooting. Pittsburgh recorded 16 dimes and had 9 steals in this game. In addition, Pittsburgh snagged 32 rebounds (14 offensive, 18 defensive), but didn't have a block. Pittsburgh ended up shooting 80.0% at the charity stripe by making 12 of their 15 tries. They also converted 9 of 35 tries from long range. When it comes to personal fouls, the Mustangs ended up with 18 while Pittsburgh had 20 personal fouls.

Kario Oquendo is a guy who played a role for the contest. He ended up scoring 17 points on 5 of 8 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 28 mins and totaled 4 rebounds. He walked away from this one shooting 62.5% from the field but finished the game without a dime.

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SMU will enter this contest with a record of 19-5 this year. They are losing possession via turnover 11.6 times per game and as a team are committing 16.7 personal fouls per game. As a unit, SMU is collecting 39.8 boards per game and has accounted for 394 dimes this year, which is 59th in the country in terms of passing the ball. The Mustangs are shooting 39.3% on shots from beyond the arc (200 of 509) and 73.2% from the charity stripe. They currently have an average of 82.8 points per game (22nd in the nation) while going 48.3% from the field.

Defensively, the Mustangs are able to force 12.3 turnovers per contest and they draw 18.1 personal fouls. They are relinquishing 32.5% on shots from downtown while they are 169th in college in PPG from their opponents (71.1). The Mustangs defense is allowing a FG percentage of 40.0% (586 of 1,465) and they concede 33.8 rebounds per contest as a unit. They currently rank 297th in D-1 in giving up assists to their opponents with 362 surrendered on the year.

The last time they took the hardwood, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish went home victorious with a score of 97-94 when they played Boston College. In regard to rebounds, Notre Dame allowed Boston College to grab 31 in total (4 offensive). They finished 47.6% from behind the 3-point line by shooting 10 out of 21 and walked away from this one shooting 12 out of 15 from the charity stripe (80.0%). The Fighting Irish permitted Boston College to convert 36 of 67 tries from the field which left them with a shooting percentage of 53.7% for the game. When this game wrapped up, the Fighting Irish went 35 out of 74 from the field which gave them a rate of 47.3%. Regarding 3-point shots, Notre Dame knocked down 7 out of 23 attempts (30.4%). They were able to make 20 of the free throws for a rate of 69.0%. Boston College had 21 personal fouls for this contest which got the Fighting Irish to the free throw line for a total of 29 shots. They also turned it over 9 times, while recording 6 steals for the matchup. The Fighting Irish were able to snag 24 defensive boards and 12 offensive rebounds for a total of 36 for this contest.

Markus Burton ended up being important for the Fighting Irish for the contest. He totaled 32 points in his 46 mins of playing time and accumulated 3 dimes for this game. He converted 12 out of 29 in this matchup for a field goal percentage of 41.4%, and totaled 7 rebounds.

Notre Dame has a mark of 11-13 so far this year. As an offensive unit, the Fighting Irish are shooting 45.9% from the field, which has them ranked 122nd in college. Notre Dame has totaled 1,770 points on the year (73.8 per contest) and they pull in 35.7 rebounds per game. Their rate of assisting teammates is at 12.0 times per contest (301st in college) and they are turning it over 10.9 times per contest. The Fighting Irish are committing 15.3 fouls per game and they go 73.8% from the charity stripe.

The Fighting Irish on the defensive side of the court are 153rd in the country in points given up per game with 70.7. They are forcing 10.3 TO's every game and have allowed teams to shoot 44.5% from the field (240th in college). The Notre Dame defense surrenders 31.7% on shots from 3-point land (178 of 561) and opponents are making 75.0% of their foul shots. They have conceded 14.3 dimes and 31.7 rebounds per contest, which ranks 277th and 41st in the country.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Notre Dame

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