Merrimack vs Fairleigh Dickinson Prediction, Odds & Best Bet for March 7 NEC Championship (Warriors' D Stands Tall)

Updated: Sep 10, 5:00pm UTC

Merrimack vs Fairleigh Dickinson Game Info

2022-23 NCAA Basketball NEC Tournament Championship
Merrimack (17-16, 12-4 NEC) vs. Fairleigh Dickinson (19-14, 10-6 NEC)
Date: Tuesday, March 7, 2023
Time: 7:00 PM ET
Venue: Hammel Court -- North Andover, Massachusetts
Coverage: ESPN2

Tuesday, March 7's NCAA college basketball lineup features the NEC Tournament Championship game between the Merrimack Warriors and Fairleigh Dickinson Knights.

Merrimack advance to the conference final following a 71-60 victory over Sacred Heart, which also marked the Warriors' 10th consecutive victory. Meanwhile, Fairleigh Dickinson is coming off a convincing 70-50 win against St. Francis (PA).

So, which school will end the campaign as the NEC's top team?

Merrimack vs Fairleigh Dickinson Odds & Spread

All college basketball betting lines, odds and prop bets are from FanDuel Sportsbook.
Moneyline: MERMCK: (-200) | FDU: (+164)
Spread: MERMCK: -4.5 (-110) | FDU: +4.5 (-110)
Total: 137.5 -- Over: (-115) | Under: (-105)

Merrimack enters this contest as the clear favorite on the moneyline and spread per FanDuel Sportsbook's odds. This 7 p.m. ET clash also features an over/under of 137.5 points with the over being favored at -115 odds.

Merrimack vs Fairleigh Dickinson Betting Trends

Merrimack has beaten the spread 15 times in 31 games.
The Warriors' ATS record as 3.5-point favorites or more is 6-4.
Out of 31 Merrimack's games so far this year, 10 have gone over the total.
Fairleigh Dickinson is 12-19-0 against the spread this year.
As a 3.5-point underdog or greater, the Knights have two wins ATS (2-5).
There have been 19 Fairleigh Dickinson games (out of 31) that went over the total this year.

Merrimack Rank	Merrimack AVG		Fairleigh Dickinson AVG	Fairleigh Dickinson Rank
352nd	62.5	Points Scored	78.2	40th
16th	62.2	Points Allowed	75.2	317th
363rd	26.0	Rebounds	31.1	227th
354th	5.5	Off. Rebounds	10.2	44th
174th	7.5	3pt Made	8.2	90th
210th	12.7	Assists	15.1	50th
314th	13.4	Turnovers	11.2	109th

Merrimack vs Fairleigh Dickinson Prediction & Pick

After scoring 79.7 PPG over the last three games, Fairleigh Dickinson is going to have issues scoring tonight. Merrimack has been playing terrific defense, holding opponents to a 59.9 PPG during its winning streak. Opposing teams are also only shooting 43.8% from the floor (No. 147) and 32.8% from three-point range (No. 100) against the Warriors this season.

On top of that, Merrimack averages a nation-high 11.4 steals while forcing 17.3 turnovers per game (T-No. 4). The Warriors also own the 27th-best defensive efficiency in the country, whereas the Knights' offensive efficiency sits at No. 56. Both teams are good at what they do, but Merrimack's defensive pressure will cause Fairleigh Dickinson to make some mistakes.

In what should be a competitive battle, expect Merrimack to emerge on top.

Final Score Prediction: Merrimack: 77 | Fairleigh Dickinson: 72

Merrimack vs Fairleigh Dickinson Best Bet

I have my eyes on Merrimack covering the 4.5-point spread tonight. On top of being 4-1 ATS in their last five games, the Warriors are 6-1 ATS in their last seven NEC matchups. Meanwhile, Fairleigh Dickinson is just 3-6 ATS in its last nine matchups and has failed to cover the spread in four of its last fiving meetings with Merrimack.

Merrimack's elite defense will show up when it matters the most, creating a decent amount of separation from Fairleigh Dickinson in the process.

Bet: Merrimack -4.5 (-110)

Devon Platana is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Devon Platana also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username PepeSilvia0. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.