Welcome to our newest edition of college basketball picks here at DFSR. A couple times a week we'll be taking a look at the NCAA basketball slate and throwing out some of the value plays.
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From Justin's first CBB article: To get things started with our college basketball picks, I thought I’d talk a little about what makes CBB so much different from the NBA. College games are much lower scoring, therefore players rarely hit some of the high values seen in the NBA. If you’re able to create a lineup that returns x4, you’re almost guaranteed to win in cash games, and if you get a lineup that returns x5 or higher, you’ll likely be in the hunt to win the big tournaments. That means finding value plays, particularly at the lower end of things is critical to success. That being said, let’s get the picks rolling.
Moses Kingsley
FD - 9200 DK - 9200
This game is has the highest over/under of the slate, so it makes sense to start our picks here with Moses Kingsley. I know Ben Simmons is a big draw, but I can’t in good conscience recommend a guy priced that high. Moses Kingsley comes in much cheaper, and has almost as much upside in my eyes. He’s averaging 18 ppg and nearly 12 rpg over his last three, and has really seemed to hit his stride in the Arkansas offense. He’s been equally effective on the defensive end, averaging just a touch under 3.5 blocks/steals per game on the season. Mix all of that with LSU’s 277th ranked scoring defense and this feels like a huge game for Kingsley.
Jaron Blossomgame
FD - 9500 DK - 8500
I don’t love the over/under for this game, but I love the matchup. Georgia Tech has the 172nd ranked scoring defense in CBB, so definitely nothing to be concerned about there. Looking up and down their roster, I’ve come to the conclusion that they simply don’t have anybody who can even remotely match up with Blossomgame (not many people do but you get the idea). I wrote him up for Saturday and all he did was go out and drop a season-high 33 against NC State. His price bumped up a smidge from Saturday, but I still like him if you can spend up to roster him.
Stefan Moody
FD - 8500 DK - 8900
It would simply be irresponsible of me not to mention this guy on this slate. In case you’re new to this whole CBB thing, Moody is a scoring machine, ranking 8th in the entire nation, and one of only 3 guys in the top ten from a power conference. Simply put, the guy gets buckets. Fortunate for him, Missouri gives up plenty of scoring as evidenced by their 173rd ranked scoring defense. There is a slight concern for a blowout here, but even if that happens Moody is a good bet to get his points in this one.
Perry Ellis
FD - 7400 DK - 7800
There are a lot of good mid-ranged players tonight, so I’m going to try to highlight who I think are the best. Perry Ellis is right near the top for me as he draws a fantastic matchup against Baylor in a game that figures to be a shootout. Baylor doesn’t have a terrible scoring defense or anything like that, but they don’t face elite offenses like Kansas often enough to trust their ranking too much. Ellis has had a bit of an up and down season thus far, but has still managed to average 16 and 6 on the season (which translates to 23.2 FD points). He only needs to beat that by a little to reach 4x value, and it wouldn’t surprise me if he surpassed that in this game which is expected to be very high scoring.
Antonio Blakeney
FD - 6200 DK - 5700
I’m really big on Antonio Blakeney tonight, and will have him in every single one of my CBB lineups. His price is on the lower end of mid-tier, and since stepping into a starting role for the injured Keith Hornsby, Blakeney has consistently seen minutes in the mid to upper 30’s. Those kinds of minutes at these kind of prices don’t happen very often so it’s important to take advantage of them before prices adjust. Now let’s get to the matchup. As I mentioned earlier, this game has the highest projected total of the slate, and Arkansas has a scoring defense ranked 276th (ironically one spot ahead of LSU). I like Blakeney to get plenty of run in this one, and he’s a guy who could easily hit 5x value tonight.
Pat Birt
FD - 7200 DK - 6400
This one is kind of coming from out of nowhere but this is really a gut pick. This game doesn’t have a super high O/U, but the last time these teams played they went to OT. That being said, I expect the game to be close and the starters to get a ton of run. Birt has been a streaky DFS player as of late, posting 30 or higher FD points in 3 of his last 6 games (including a 33.7 FD game against Temple). I’d keep clear of him in cash games, but if you’re looking for a good tournament differentiator that most people will overlook, I’d give Birt a shot.
Marcus Lee
FD - 5200 DK - 5600
The lower priced guys on this slate are pretty rough, so I recommend each of these guys with a grain of salt. This one if pretty contingent on Alex Poythress not playing, so make sure to monitor his status before tip-off. But against Texas A&M, Lee played 31 minutes, which is well above his season average. If Calipari gives him another 25-30 minutes in this one Lee could be a solid value play to fill out the rest of your lineup.
Daniel Dingle
FD - 4500 DK - 3800
Another guy who could see a huge minutes and usage uptick due to injury is Daniel Dingle. With Rashad Smith getting injured in the UCF game, Dingle got 31 minutes and almost turned it into nearly a 4x value. If Smith can’t go due to the shoulder injury, I suspect Dingle will get big minutes again. If this game is as close and high scoring as the last, it shouldn’t be difficult for him to hit value.
Justin Bibbs
FD - 4900 DK - 4900
Again, I can’t stress enough how tough the lower priced players are tonight, but I do think Justin Bibbs could be an interesting guy to run out there if you want to spend up on the big guys. He’s priced near the minimum, but leads his team in minutes per game (only in CBB folks). But this makes for an interesting opportunity since Virginia Tech is playing the abysmal Boston College tonight. My thinking on this one is if he gets 35 minutes in a game that should be pretty close, he’s bound to put up some decent numbers. By no means a safe play, but very interesting for tournaments for sure.
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Is this for the 23rd?