This article is part of our DFS College Basketball series.
With no NBA to play Tuesday night, the college basketball tournaments are getting bigger and better across both major sites. Let's run down some of the key players and games to consider when constructing tonight's lineups.
Top Players:
Grant Williams, Tennessee ($8,900 FD, $9,700 DK): He'll be the best player on the floor in a game with the highest over/under on the slate, so what's not to like? Vanderbilt is a middle-of-the-pack team in terms of pace, with a defense outside of KenPom's top-100. This is also a rematch of a Jan. 23 matchup where Williams scored 43 real life points en route to a DK score of 64.5. For those here that are NBA regulars, scores in the 60s happen rarely, if ever. There's no Zion Williamson or Ethan Happ to break the bank on tonight, so I'd go as far as to call Williams a cash game cornerstone, even if we can't count on overtime again. Pair Williams with a red-hot Jordan Bone ($7,200 FD, $7,300 DK) if you think this game goes over and you want to maximize the Tennessee exposure with a G/F stack.
Carsen Edwards, Purdue ($8,700 FD, $9,600 DK): Over his last 10 games, Edwards is averaging 40.0 DK points, which makes him a model of consistency. While there's enough ceiling for GPP appeal, the spot here isn't great. He gets a road matchup against a slow-paced Hoosier team, which despite a mediocre 13-12 record, still has a top-40 defense according to KenPom. Edwards
With no NBA to play Tuesday night, the college basketball tournaments are getting bigger and better across both major sites. Let's run down some of the key players and games to consider when constructing tonight's lineups.
Top Players:
Grant Williams, Tennessee ($8,900 FD, $9,700 DK): He'll be the best player on the floor in a game with the highest over/under on the slate, so what's not to like? Vanderbilt is a middle-of-the-pack team in terms of pace, with a defense outside of KenPom's top-100. This is also a rematch of a Jan. 23 matchup where Williams scored 43 real life points en route to a DK score of 64.5. For those here that are NBA regulars, scores in the 60s happen rarely, if ever. There's no Zion Williamson or Ethan Happ to break the bank on tonight, so I'd go as far as to call Williams a cash game cornerstone, even if we can't count on overtime again. Pair Williams with a red-hot Jordan Bone ($7,200 FD, $7,300 DK) if you think this game goes over and you want to maximize the Tennessee exposure with a G/F stack.
Carsen Edwards, Purdue ($8,700 FD, $9,600 DK): Over his last 10 games, Edwards is averaging 40.0 DK points, which makes him a model of consistency. While there's enough ceiling for GPP appeal, the spot here isn't great. He gets a road matchup against a slow-paced Hoosier team, which despite a mediocre 13-12 record, still has a top-40 defense according to KenPom. Edwards stuggled in a trip to Bloomington last seasoon, but produced 20 points, seven assists, four rebounds and three steals back on Jan. 19.
Bruno Fernando, Maryland ($8,100 FD, $9,400 DK): Fernando gets a faster-paced Iowa team, with a mediocre defense, in a game with the second-highest over/under on the slate as of Tuesday afternoon. He's also averaged 36.2 DK points over his last 10, despite coming off a down showing against Michigan with just 24.0 points. Seems like a decent buy-low opportunity on FanDuel, but on DraftKings, I'm finding the extra $300 for Williams when possible.
Lamar Stevens, Penn St. ($8,400 FD, $9,200 DK): Stevens is really the lone bright spot on this year's Nittany Lions, and he's been especially hot of late with 39.3 DK points/game over his last seven. He gets an opponent that has won two in a row, but is still a shell of its former self since losing starting center Isaac Copeland to a knee injury. With the minutes of Mike Watkins down of late, Stevens is seemingly in an exceptional spot here. The only real downside is the pace, which currently holds the crown for the lowest over/under of the night.
Value Plays:
Christian Mekowulu, Texas A&M ($4,400 FD, $5,600 DK): Price discrepancies this high on FanDuel are usually reserved for the elite tier of players. Mekowulu is up and down, but is a starter with double-double potential after recording two in his last three games. Great GPP option on FanDuel, though worth noting the ceiling might be limited with Josh Nebo back from a knee injury.
Devonte Bandoo, Baylor ($5,000 FD, $4,400 DK): This play is contingent on the health of the Baylor backcourt, as both Makai Mason (toe) and King McClure (knee) are dealing with injuries. Their status will come down to the wire, but Bandoo makes for a good pivot even against one of the conference's best teams. He's averaged 33.0 MPG over his last three.
Phil Cofer, Florida State ($5,000 FD, $4,400 DK): I can't write a column without mentioning Cofer, can I? I'll admit I'm still chasing his 2017-18 production, but his minutes are up and he's now started five in a row. Clemson senior Elijah Thomas will be tied up defending Kabengele and/or Koumadje, so there might be room for Cofer to finally sneak in a ceiling game.
De'ron Davis, Indiana ($5,000 FD, $4,000 DK): The matchup here isn't great with a healthy Purdue frontcourt, but Davis has played 20.3 MPG over his last four and picked up the start Saturday at Minnesota. He produces in a lot of categories beyond scoring.
Tre Campbell, South Carolina ($5,100 FD, $4,600 DK): I'll talk a little more about South Carolina below, but for those here just glancing for values, I wanted to include the senior.
Games to Target:
South Carolina vs. Mississippi (-2.5), 148.5, 7:00 p.m. EST
What happened to Terrance Davis ($7,800 FD, $8,500 DK)? The last time he was featured in one of my columns, he went for a zero in the first half. For the NBA regulars giving this a read, that's like Giannis getting held to single digits in a half. Davis did bounce back with 36 minutes Saturday, but that resulted in only 26 fantasy points. Recent performance has understandably raised doubts about his consistency, but we can't forget Davis has a ceiling in the low 50s.
The rest of Mississippi gets a South Carolina team that is ranked No. 119 in defense and No. 41 in adjusted pace, per KenPom. While Davis hasn't been himself, junior Breein Tyree ($7,800 DK) has averaged 34.2 DK points over his last five. That will put him in play in cash games. Devontae Shuler ($6,100 DK) is scoring dependent, logging 30+ DK points in his last two before going under 20 in his previous two. Looking at usage, Blake Hinson ($4,700) is next in line after Davis and Tyree, but he's been dealing with an illness that limited him to 11 minutes Saturday. I'll probably stick to the top-3 here.
For South Carolina, we have home underdogs in an average matchup in terms of pace and defense. Mississippi's pace is in the top third of the country, and they are No. 50 in KenPom's adjusted defensive efficiency. Chris Silva ($8,00 FD, $7,900 DK) is one of the most attractive options on the slate in my eyes, especially if you're pivoting off Williams, Fernando, Morgan and Mooney (the only one I really like in that group is the high-priced Williams, anyway). The senior seems like a pretty safe bet for 40 with a ceiling in the upper-50s after logging 52 DK points Saturday. Only risk here is that he can find himself in foul trouble on occasion, though the strength of Ole Miss doesn't lie in their frontcourt. Another Gamecock in play at a cheaper price is Tre Campbell ($5,100 FD, $4,600 DK). He's averaging 22.5 DK points over his last five, and that price would have gotten him 6x on DraftKings in his last two.
Iowa (-2.5) vs. Maryland, o/u 147, 8:00 p.m. EST
This is one of those over/unders that is produced not because of fast-paced teams, but because the game is expected to be close. These are two of the three teams (along with Wisconsin) that are fighting for the final first-round bye in the Big Ten tournament, and there's no better way to get in the driver's seat than with a win here.
Let's start with the home team. Iowa's Tyler Cook ($7,900 FD, $8,100 DK) struggled against the Terps last year, and I'm probably off him tonight against a frontcourt led by Bruno Fernando and Jalen Smith. Luka Garza ($6,300 FD, $6,400) has the same matchup concerns, but it's a price that's much easier to stomach. He's really struggled over his last three since back-to-back efforts of 30+ DK points. So where does that leave us? Isaiah Moss ($5,400 DK) has the next highest usage rate and has been strong over his last two. There's a ceiling in the 40s, but he has just as good of a chance to be in single digits. GPPs only for me. I'm a bigger fan of Jordan Bohannon ($6,000 FD, $6,000 DK), even against a defense that defends the arc well. Elite teams like Michigan and Michigan State have shut him down, but he's averaged 31.0 DK points/game over the last three.
Fernando was discussed above for Maryland, but I wanted to start by noting Anthony Cowan ($6,900 FD, $7,800 DK) gets one of the best spots of the year in this one, and he's actually been the usage leader over the Terps' last 10. There are better cash game spots in his tier on DraftKings, but the big FD price break makes him worth a look for me. If you have eight Fernando lineups, you better get 1-2 with Jalen Smith ($6,700 FD, $6,200 DK), just in case Fernando gets hit with whistles. Another wild card for Maryland is freshman Eric Ayala ($5,200 FD, $5,000 DK), who is hitting a team-high 44.8 percent of his outside shots this year.
Games to Fade:
Penn State (-3) vs. Nebraska, o/u 131.5, 7:00 p.m. CST
Just as Vegas figures out how to properly set point spreads for the Isaac Copeland-less Cornhuskers, they go ahead and rattle off a two-game winning streak. I'm still not sure there's a spot in the NCAA Tournament for the 10th-place team in the conference, but Nebraska is certainly livelier than they were a few weeks back. As discussed above, Lamar Stevens isn't a bad play given the state of the Nebraska frontcourt. They have rotated a variety of players to help fill the Copeland void, but most of the actual production has gone to Isaiah Roby ($7,900 FD, $7,500 DK). Problem is, his price has had plenty of time to adjust accordingly. Penn State has been atrocious against big men this year, but you're asking for quite a bit to expect Roby to hit 5x, even coming off a massive effort against Northwestern on Saturday (53.2 FD, 58.0 DK). One other player worth a mention is Penn State's Jamari Wheeler ($5,400 FD, $4,200 DK), just because he's a starter with a crazy low DK price. There's not much in terms of shot volume, but the minutes are there for him to get production in several ancillary categories.
