Ed Scimia
• Betting Analyst
17+ years betting experience
Updated:
Aug 29, 2026 , 12:15 PM ET
• 4 min read
The Mercury and Tempo are both finding it hard to score points right now, and with Toronto on a back-to-back, a slow and low-scoring game is on tap for Saturday night.
Photo By – Reuters Connect. Kiki Rice of the Toronto Tempo WNBA
The Phoenix Mercury are overwhelming favorites to break a four-game losing streak as they host the Toronto Tempo on Saturday night.
Neither team has shown much offensively lately, and that has me backing the Under in my Tempo vs. Mercury predictions and WNBA picks for Saturday, Aug 29.
Tempo vs Mercury prediction
Tempo vs Mercury best bet: Under 174.5 -112
The Toronto Tempo and Phoenix Mercury are each poor on both ends of the court, but the lack of offensive firepower has been a consistent problem lately.
Toronto is averaging 78.6 ppg over their last five outings, while Phoenix ranks 11th in scoring this season at 83.7 ppg.
The one thing that might push the total higher would be the Tempo’s…well, tempo. But Toronto’s on the second game of a back-to-back, making it more likely to play at the Mercury’s pace, which ranks fifth-slowest in the WNBA.
I’m backing the Under tonight at totals of 172.5 or more.
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Tempo vs Mercury same-game parlay
The Tempo aren’t winning games, but bettors have taken advantage of the fact that Toronto typically gets a lot of points.
The Tempo have now covered in six of their last eight games, while Phoenix is 1-7 ATS in its last eight. I’m taking Toronto to get the cover as long as the spread stays at +8.5 or more.
I’m rounding out my SGP tonight with a bet on Kiki Rice to hit the Over on her assists total. Rice has put up 5+ assists in five of her last eight games, coming up just short with four on two other occasions.
The Mercury allow opponents to rack up 21.5 assists per game, and I like Rice to take advantage of that tonight.
Tempo vs Mercury SGP +495
Under 174.5
Tempo +9.5
Kiki Rice Over 4.5 assists
Want more basketball parlays? Check out our WNBA parlay picks page!
Ed Scimia’s 2026 Transparency Record
Best bet: 27-28, -3.01 units
SGP: 10-45, +1.53 units
Player prop: 27-7, +17.91 units
Tempo vs Mercury odds
Spread: Tempo +9.5 (-110) | Mercury -9.5 (-110)
Moneyline: Tempo +330 | Mercury -425
Over/Under: Over 174.5 (-108) | Under 174.5 (-112)
Tempo vs Mercury trend
The Under is 4-0 in Toronto’s last four games. Find more WNBA betting trends.
How to watch Tempo vs Mercury
Location
Mortgage Matchup Center, Phoenix, AZ
Date
Saturday, August 29, 2026
Tip-off
10:00 p.m. ET
TV
TSN, KPHE
Tempo vs Mercury latest injuries
Tempo: Not yet submitted.
Mercury: Kahleah Copper (Probable), Kelsey Plum (Out), Marta Suarez (Questionable)
Find our latest WNBA injury reports.
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change.
Not intended for use in MA.
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Ed Scimia has been writing about the gaming industry for over 15 years. He graduated from Syracuse University with degrees in Magazine Journalism and Political Science in 2003, and has covered major gambling events like the World Series of Poker in his career. Since joining Covers in 2022, Ed has offered his sports betting analysis primarily on MLB, NFL, college football, and college basketball games, but is willing to take on any sport.
His betting strategy focuses more on finding line value based on deviations from the market rather than traditional handicapping, primarily shopping between DraftKings, FanDuel, and Fanatics in his home state of Connecticut, though he’s not afraid to do deep game analysis to find profitable bets at any book.
Outside of gambling, Ed is an avid curler who competes in mixed doubles on the World Curling Tour and runs a popular curling YouTube channel, Chess on Ice. That experience has come in handy during the Olympics, when he has proven to be a successful curling bettor as well.
Ed’s advice to new bettors is to always open multiple sportsbook accounts and check the odds at each before placing any bet. Successful sports betting is about consistently beating the closing line value, which requires finding spots where one book is offering odds far better than the rest of the market and jumping on those opportunities.
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