DFS College Basketball: Sunday Preview

DFS College Basketball: Sunday Preview

This article is part of our DFS College Basketball series.

As usual, we'll get things started with expected point totals for the day, which will lead us to some of the top plays of the afternoon slate on DraftKings:

Targets

1. Oscar Tshiebwe, F, West Virginia ($6,100 DK, $5,700 FD)

There's a massive foul trouble risk any time you roll out Tshiebwe, but we've been lucky enough to see that suppress the supremely-talented big man's price. In the one game he wasn't whistled against VCU? 11 points and 16 rebounds in 29 minutes. West Virginia gets a massive pace boost against Georgetown on Sunday, and Tshiebwe is one of three starters with a usage rate above 20 percent. I also like Miles McBride ($6,100 DK) as a solid middle-tier option on DraftKings. With the highest implied total of the day, you'll want a couple pieces here.

2. Tyger Campbell, G, UCLA ($6,000 DK)

Sticking to the middle tier, Campbell has the third-highest usage rate on the Bruins (though leader Cody Riley may be a bit unsustainable following the return of Jalen Hill). He also sports the highest shot rate at 25.1 percent. This isn't a game you want to stack up because of the low over/under (130.5), but Cal isn't anything special defensively, giving up 36.5 on DK to Remy Martin this week. Martin is the more efficient overall player, but Campbell has him beat in both shot and usage rates, so I'd expect a similar outcome here at a much cheaper price.

3. Solomon Young, F, Iowa State ($5,100 DK)

The Cyclones have the third-highest implied total of the slate, and Young is currently second on the team in usage rate at 25.0 percent. After a dud in the opener, Young put up 33.3 DK points and attempted 17 shots Dec. 2 against South Dakota State. He sees most of his time at center, and this is not the DePaul team we saw last year whose strength is in the post. Gone is Paul Reed, while Jaylen Butz (undisclosed) is presumed sidelined. The roster turnover and presumed fast pace of DePaul also makes Rasir Bolton ($8,300) an attractive pay-up option.

Fades

1. Cody Riley, F, UCLA ($4,800 DK)

This seems like an awesome price for the team's current leader in usage rate, so what's the problem? Jalen Hill is back from a knee injury, and in the last game against Seattle, Hill posted a double-double in 25 minutes off the bench. Riley got the start, scoring a season-low 11.8 DK points in only 12 minutes. The starting lineup could get changed today, but even if it doesn't, this game has the lowest over/under (130.5) on the slate.

2. Matt Bradley, G, California ($8,700 DK)

The good news? Bradley has scored 27.8 DK points or more in all four games this season. The bad news? At $8,700, he would have hit the 4x you're looking for in cash games in just one of those contests -- his most recent game against Arizona State. The Bruins are not the Sun Devils, however. UCLA is ranked five spots higher in KenPom's defensive efficiency, but the real kicker is ASU's No. 17-ranked pace, compared to No. 337 for UCLA. Bradley probably won't kill your lineup, but this isn't the spot to look for a ceiling game.

3. Javon Freeman-Liberty, G, DePaul ($7,200 DK)

This one is more about uncertainty than it is how I feel about Freeman-Liberty as a player. He was consistently the best player on the court during his Valparaiso days, averaging 19.0 ppg last season. He's obtained a waiver for immediate eligibility, but $7,200 is still too rich for my blood until we're 100 percent sure he's starting and will see a usage rate north of 20 percent. This is Charlie Moore's team, after all. 

We didn't touch on the FanDuel slate much today, so here's a quick salary comparison, which tends to show some solid places to start looking for value (aka Georgetown):

The author(s) of this article may play in daily fantasy contests including – but not limited to – games that they have provided recommendations or advice on in this article. In the course of playing in these games using their personal accounts, it's possible that they will use players in their lineups or other strategies that differ from the recommendations they have provided above. The recommendations in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of RotoWire. Jake Letarski plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: FanDuel: rotojakeski, DraftKings: RotoJakeSki.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jake Letarski
RotoWire Editor for College Basketball and MMA. Frequent podcaster, plus radio and video guest. Follow Jake on Twitter at @RotoJake.
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