This article is part of our DFS College Basketball series.
We're closing in on the home stretch of the college basketball regular season with four top-25 teams in action Wednesday. The featured contest on DraftKings is the $15 Pull Up Jumper with a $2k top prize and an eight-game slate, and over on FanDuel we have six games ahead of the $5.55 All American with $1,000 going to the winner. Note the earlier start times tonight with FanDuel starting first at 6 p.m. EST and DraftKings beginning at 6:30 p.m. EST.
Targets
Alan Griffin, F, Syracuse ($8,300 DK, $8,300 FD)
Griffin is in the upper echelon of college productivity, averaging over one fantasy point per minute. He should have a good chance to play 38+ minutes if the game doesn't get out of hand. Griffin is a difficult player to defend because he can score efficiently when driving to the basket and is shooting 37 percent from long-range with over two made per game. Griffin will also provide points on the defensive end with nearly five combined blocks and steals over his last six games, so it's no surprise that he's out-performed today's salary in three of his last four games.
Olivier Sarr, F, Kentucky ($6,100 DK, $4,900 FD)
Kentucky gets a great matchup tonight against Vanderbilt, a program that ranks last in the SEC in defensive efficiency. The Commodores have given up over 70 points in 9-of-10 conference games and 80+ in half of them. Sarr's best fantasy game this season came earlier in the year against Vanderbilt when he put up 41 fantasy points. The Commodores have been especially weak defending the paint, as they don't start anyone over 6-foot-9 and have allowed opponents to shoot 54 percent from inside the arc.
Jordan Wright, G/F, Vanderbilt ($5,500 DK, $4,600 FD)
Wright is a sneaky value play with roster flexibility, having put up his best game of the season against Kentucky in which he scored 18 points and grabbed eight boards. He won't need anywhere near that to live up to this salary. His strong play has led to him starting the last six games and he's shooting 49 percent on this season and also chipping in from long range. Wright has been contributing in every statistical category and has been one of the most active options after Scotty Pippen.
Fades
A.J. Lawson, South Carolina ($8,000 DK, $6,600 FD)
Lawson comes in with his most expensive price-tag of the season and $1,400 higher on DraftKings than FanDuel. Insert a tough Tennessee opponent that ranks third in the country defensively and is allowing opponents to shoot less than 30 percent from long-range -- where Lawson has scored over half of his points from this season. I'd rather pivot to Keyshawn Bryant ($6,600 DK, $5,500) who can be had cheaper and should have success driving to the bucket.
Aaron Thompson, G, Butler ($6,800 DK)
If there is a game to shy away from tonight, the match-up between Marquette and Butler is the one I'd advise. This should be a slow-paced game that could possibly stay in the 50s as neither team is a juggernaut offensively. Thompson was held to only three points in the teams' first meeting and was clearly bothered by Marquette's length and athleticism. With that said, the Golden Eagles have struggled to defend the perimeter and Chuck Harris ($4,700 DK) is shooting 40 percent from deep.
Jalen Graham, F, Arizona St. ($6,000 DK, $5,600 FD)
Keep an eye on the injury status of both Josh Christopher and Marcus Bagley who are making the trip to USC when analyzing this game. Graham's value shouldn't be affected much either way as his minutes have stayed roughly equal and his role in the offense remained unchanged while they were out. Graham will have a difficult time against a stout USC defense in which the Mobley brothers have protected the paint to hold opponents to 42 percent shooting from two.