College basketball season is in the midst of Championship Week, and we have a two-game slate tonight.
March Madness is right around the corner, but you can get in all the college hoops hype by playing daily contests at FanDuel today. If you've played NBA DFS before, it's quite simple: pick a total of eight players -- four guards, three forwards, and one utility spot you can use for either position. Stay within the $50,000 salary cap and field the team you think will score the most fantasy points.
Where scoring differs from NBA is in the blocks and steals categories, with each worth two FanDuel points apiece rather than the three you get in daily NBA contests.
Now that you're in the know, we can attack today's main slate, which locks at 4:30 p.m. EST.
Which players should you be targeting, and why?
Known Relevant Injury Situations: Torry Johnson (Wake Forest) is questionable.
Guards
Cole Anthony, North Carolina ($8,500) - I'm expecting the North Carolina guard to rebound after his dismal performance against the Duke Blue Devils in the regular season finale. Anthony has played 36-plus minutes in four straight games and has attempted at least 12 shots in every game that he's played in this season. Playing a lot of minutes and hoisting up a lot of shots is a great combination against the struggling Virginia Tech Hokies. The Hokies have lost 10 out of their last 12 games and have fallen to 77th in KenPom's adjusted defense ratings.
Justin Champagnie, Pittsburgh ($6,100) - Champagnie has monster upside due to his ability to contribute on both ends of the court (topped 43 FanDuel points in two out of the last eight games). The Pittsburgh Panthers' guard is averaging 0.75 FanDuel points per minute. At that production clip, he is expected to pay off his price tag in 32.5 minutes of action. The freshman has logged 32-plus minutes in 10 out of the last 11 games.
Tyrece Radford, Virginia Tech ($6,000) - Radford leads the Virginia Tech Hokies in rebounding (6.4 per game) and steals (1.0 per game). He's the team's second leading scorer (10.4 per game) and is third on the team in assists (1.7 per game). The freshman saw his minutes spike as the regular season wound down. Radford has played 30-plus minutes in eight consecutive games -- up significantly from his seasonal average of 26.5 minutes. Up next is a massive pace-up game for the Hokies as they square off with North Carolina. Virginia Tech is 305th in KenPom's adjusted tempo ratings while North Carolina is 63rd.
Trey McGowans, Pittsburgh ($5,400) - McGowans plays a ton of minutes (averages 33.6 per game) and is second amongst the Panthers with a 23.0% usage rate, per KenPom. He's in a phenomenal spot as Pitt opens the ACC tournament against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons. The Demon Deacons have been atrocious defensively as they are 149th in KenPom's adjusted defense ratings. This will be a huge pace-up game for the Panthers as they are 309th in KenPom's adjusted tempo ratings while Wake Forest is 80th. I'm also bullish on McGowan's teammate, Au'Diese Toney ($5,200). Both players have tremendous upside at their cheap price tags.
Leaky Black, North Carolina ($5,100) - While his usage late is low (15.2% per KenPom), Black is a solid fantasy asset due to his ability to contribute in every statistical category. Over the last 10 games, Black is averaging 0.69 FanDuel points per minute. At that production clip, he is expected to pay off his price tag in 30 minutes of action. The sophomore has logged 30-plus minutes in seven consecutive games.
Brandon Robinson, North Carolina ($5,000) - Although we can roster just four Tar Heels, all five starters are in play. North Carolina's rotation is only six-to-seven deep, and the matchup is phenomenal. Robinson ranks third or better amongst the Tar Heels in minutes (30.5 per game), points (11.9 per game), assists (2.5 per game), and steals (1.1 per game).
Other guards to consider ($5,000 and below): Wabissa Bede and Jahcobi Neath.
Forwards
Garrison Brooks, North Carolina ($8,300) - If North Carolina has any hope of making a deep run in the ACC tournament, they'll need Brooks to continue his stellar play. Over the last six games, the forward is averaging 24.8 points, 9.2 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 0.8 blocks/steals in 36.2 minutes. On a slate devoid of appealing forward plays, Brooks stands out despite his expensive price tag.
Olivier Sarr, Wake Forest ($7,500) - With Anthony and Brooks on this slate, I feel like Sarr's ownership percentage could be on the lower end. Sarr is a great pivot off Brooks or Anthony as he possesses similar upside to the two North Carolina stars. Over the last four game, Sarr is averaging 35.05 FanDuel points.
Armando Bacot, North Carolina ($5,600) - Bacot was a game-time decision for the Heels' regular season finale against Duke. The former five-star center shook off injury concerns (left the game prior due to an injury after playing nine minutes) and recorded 13 points and 12 rebounds in the Tar Heels regular season finale.
Isaiah Mucius, Wake Forest ($4,800) - Mucius has seen his playing time increase significantly as of late. The sophomore is averaging 29.8 minutes of action over the last four games, which is up from his seasonal average of 22.6 minutes. He's also averaging 22.1 FanDuel points over the last four games. He's easily my favorite play under $5,000 on this slate.
Other forwards to consider ($5,000 and below): PJ Horne and Eric Hamilton.
Matthew Hiatt is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Matthew Hiatt also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username easternmh. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his articles are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.