Tempo vs. Mercury Prediction, Odds, Best WNBA Prop Bet for Saturday, Aug. 29

Saturday night features a standalone game in the WNBA, as the Toronto Tempo remain on the road for the second night of a back-to-back against the Phoenix Mercury.

This is the final game before the FIBA World Cup break for both teams, and both are looking to snap losing streaks even though they won’t be in the playoffs in the 2026 season. Toronto has dropped three games in a row, including last night’s matchup with the Las Vegas Aces, falling to 1-14 over its last 15 games.

Meanwhile, the Mercury have dropped four straight games and are now nine games under .500 at home in the 2026 season.

They’ll be without star guard Kelsey Plum in this matchup, but Toronto has been dealing with a bunch of injuries as well, playing the last several games without Brittney Sykes or All-Star Marina Mabrey.

Sykes has missed most of the season, and the Tempo have gone from a sneaky playoff contender to arguably the worst team in the league without her.

Oddsmakers have Phoenix favored at home, but can it cover the spread after losing four games in a row?

Let’s take a look at the odds, a player prop to bet and my prediction for the second and final game on Aug. 29.

Tempo vs. Mercury Odds, Spread and Total

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook

Spread

Tempo +8.5 (-105)
Mercury -8.5 (-115)

Moneyline

Tempo: +280
Mercury: -355

Total

176.5 (Over -108/Under -112)

Tempo vs. Mercury How to Watch

Date: Saturday, Aug. 29
Time: 10:00 p.m. EST
Venue: Mortgage Matchup Center
How to Watch (TV): Arizona Family of Sports Network, Merc+, TSN, WNBA League Pass
Tempo record: 11-28
Mercury record: 13-26

Tempo vs. Mercury Injury Reports

Tempo Injury Report

Not submitted yet

Mercury Injury Report

Kahleah Copper – probable
Kelsey Plum – out
Marta Suarez – questionable

Tempo vs. Mercury Best WNBA Prop Bet

Mercury Best WNBA Prop Bet

Kahleah Copper 20+ Points (-167)

Earlier today, I shared in my WNBA Best Bets column – Peter’s Points – why I love Copper as a scorer in this matchup with the Tempo:

Mercury star guard Kahleah Copper is averaging 21.3 points per game this season while shooting 44.5 percent from the field. She’s struggled from 3 (29.8 percent), but Copper is taking 16.1 shots per game – the second most in her WNBA career.

The star guard is coming off a 35-point game in a loss to the Washington Mystics, who have the No. 3 defense in the WNBA this season. Now, she has a cupcake matchup against the Tempo, who are dead last in defensive rating and allow a league-worst 93.6 points per game.

In two meetings with the Tempo, Copper has 18 and 27 points, and she’s scored 20 or more points in 16 of her last 25 games, averaging 23.5 per game during that stretch.

With Kelsey Plum (leg) out on Saturday, Copper should handle a massive role on offense.

Tempo vs. Mercury Prediction and Pick

I don’t love laying the points with the Mercury in this spot, especially since they’re just 5-14 at home this season, but the Tempo are in an all-time bad rut right now and extremely banged up.

The team has been without All-Star Marina Mabrey as of late, and the team’s offense has suffered because of it, scoring less than 80 points in three straight games. The Tempo have just one win in their last 15 games, and they have the worst net rating in the league (minus-16.7) over that stretch.

Even though they have a solid record against the spread as road underdogs this season, that has gone out the window as of late with losses to Seattle and Las Vegas.

Phoenix still have some All-Star level talent in Copper and Alyssa Thomas in action, and the Mercury won the last meeting between these teams by nine points on the road.

I’ll lay the points with Phoenix with both of these teams out of the playoff race in 2026.

Pick: Mercury -8.5 (-115 at DraftKings)

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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Find Peter Dewey's WNBA betting record here (futures included). You can also follow my daily plays on BetStamp here.

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