NCAA Tournament March Madness

#172 Mercer

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Projection: need to automatically qualify

Mercer’s body of work shows a team that can pile up comfortable wins inside the league yet has been hurt by a couple of brutal road outings that leave a lingering mark on its resume. The heavy defeat at Tennessee and the rough trip to Winthrop stand out as damaging results, while victories over Lipscomb, Appalachian State, and Georgia State plus true road wins at Eastern Kentucky and Elon demonstrate the roster’s ability to win away from home. That contrast — capable of dominating lesser foes but not yet collecting a meaningful road or neutral scalp — explains the cautious view of the team’s profile, and it also points to a clear path forward: wins in the upcoming big road tests at Clemson, UCF, and Washington State or strong showings against league rivals such as Furman and ETSU would transform perception, whereas more poor results in away spots will keep the résumé where it is.

Date Opponent Ranking Outcome
11/3@Tennessee16L76-61
11/9Lipscomb158W92-77
11/15@Winthrop106L105-69
11/22@E Kentucky268W95-83
11/26Appalachian St296W75-67
11/29@Elon214W91-84
12/2Georgia St335W78-67
12/13@Clemson214%
12/17@UCF5810%
12/20@Washington St16537%
12/31@Furman15535%
1/3@ETSU11322%
1/7Citadel36394%
1/10Wofford21167%
1/15@VMI33974%
1/17@UNC Greensboro29260%
1/21W Carolina25675%
1/24@Wofford21145%
1/29UNC Greensboro29279%
1/31VMI33988%
2/5@Chattanooga20745%
2/7@Samford23951%
2/11Furman15558%
2/14@Citadel36385%
2/19Chattanooga20767%
2/21Samford23972%
2/25@W Carolina25654%
2/28ETSU11342%