This article is part of our DFS College Basketball series.
The grind continues Wednesday as we inch towards March. The DraftKings main slate tips at 6:30 p.m. EST, stretches through 9:00 starts and includes nine games. Our typical $2,000 first-place prize is up for grabs, with a slightly larger overall tournament that offers $10,000 in total prizes.
It's a different slate for me while simply skimming prices, matchups and game totals. We only have two games with 150+ point totals and only three teams expected to flirt with 80 points. Yet, we have a pretty top-heavy slate from a player pricing standpoint, some of which look elevated (Zakai Zeigler, who is in elite form, but has a really low floor). His teammate in Dalton Knecht is my favorite pay-up. Connecticut leads the way with an 83.0 point implied total, but all five of its starters are priced at $7,100 or greater, making it difficult to back any of them singularly.
Top Players
Julian Reese, F, Maryland ($8,100)
I find a lot of appeal in stacking Maryland's two studs in Reese and Jahmir Young in what should be a pace-boosted spot against Iowa. The Terps don't play fast, however, and put up only 69 points in a prior matchup with the Hawkeyes. Both of these studs flourished, with Young going for 38.75 DKP and Reese 40.75 DKP. Pick your poison based on budget and position need, but I always side with the forward for my lineup builds, even if it usually comes with more foul risk. Reese has at least nine rebounds in 10 of his last 12, scoring in double-digits at the same rate. The slight price decrease for Reese has me feeling he has a better shot at a 5x return, but both have ample stability.
Tyson Walker, G, Michigan State ($7,300)
We need 29.2 DKP to get a fair 4x return here on Walker, and he's posted 27.0 DKP or better in 17 of 23 games to date, so I like our odds. Especially when paired with the matchup against a Penn State team ranking 64th in tempo, per KenPom. Michigan State hung 92 on them in an earlier matchup where Walker had a massive 45.25 DKP. He did it with a diverse state line that we can rely on again here for a ceiling thanks to the pace and additional possessions. Plus, his scoring creates a solid floor.
Middle Tier
Jamiya Neal, G/F, Arizona State ($6,800)
The price point here is uncomfortable. Neal rarely leaves the floor, averaging 32.6 minutes per game on the year, and has taken 10+ shots in four straight and eight of 10, so you'd think there's a safe floor. In 40 percent of those outings, however, he's been under 18.0 DKP. Pair that with Oregon State's 308th-ranked tempo, and this is a volatile spot. Nonetheless, Neal is the best of the worst; as this middle-tier forward grouping isn't elite. This slate sets up for a solid stars-and-scrubs build, loading up on the four or more $7,000 players and building as best you can from the lower tier to round things out. If balance is your strategy, though, Neal fits in.
Kyshawn George, G, Miami ($5,600)
This is the Miami section of this column, as we'll need to monitor availability, but there should be some solid fantasy opportunity. Nijel Pack is uncertain to be available, and George is equally questionable. Miami is, at best, six deep, so you have to assume one of these two will go, if not both. George was reportedly close over the weekend, so I'm personally expecting him to play. The 'Canes dropped 95 on Clemson in an earlier meeting, and while that's impossible if they aren't at full strength, we'll get some one-on-one matchups here that George can exploit with his length. The recent absence has lowered his price to a very favorable number.
Bargain Options
Tafara Gapare, F, Georgia Tech ($4,600)
Emerging is probably too strong of a word, but Gapare appears to be gaining his coaches' confidence and producing thanks to increased minutes. He's averaging a mere 5.5 points and 5.8 rebounds over his last four games, but it's come with 23.5 minutes and a reasonable 19.3 percent usage rate. Compare that to 2.8 points and 1.1 rebounds over 13.1 minutes in his prior nine outings, and we've got a little to like. This game comes with the slate's lowest total, and the rising price on Gapare likely suggests his ceiling is a 3x return. But that's fine enough if we can pair it with a third top option in the $7,000+ range.
Davonte Davis, G, Arkansas ($4,200)
I don't know why I continue to do this to myself, let alone you as the reader, but here we are again looking at the Razorbacks, who've been entirely unpredictable every game out. Davis returned from a three-game absence where he left the team, and promptly played 35 minutes, providing 17.5 DKP. It's not a huge showing given those minutes, and given how inconsistent have been for Arkansas, it's seemingly as likely Davis plays five minutes as it is he repeats his last showing. Still, we have a solid 150.5 point total here, and Arkansas is expected to give us just under half of that, and the price point on Davis is still flirting with risk-free.
