Good morning to you beautiful people out there in DFS land! You have managed to find yourself in a great spot here at DFS Army. I look forward to providing you with analysis and picks throughout this 2018-2019 CBB season! Remember, if I mention a player as a cash game play they most likely are OK for GPP play. Let’s take a look at what games are on the slate for DraftKings and Fanduel. The KenPom score projections are in parenthesis.
Alabama (72) vs Mississippi (75)
Penn St (69) vs Minnesota (68)
West Virginia (62) vs Texas Tech (76)
St Johns (74) vs Marquette (77)
Louisville (74) vs UNC (79)
SMU (72) vs Tulsa (71) – DK Only
Texas (68) vs Kansas (72)
Syracuse (67) vs Duke (78)
UCLA (77) vs Arizona St (80)
Georgetown (75) vs Seton Hall (78)
Texas AM (68) vs Mississippi St (76)
Illinois (77) vs Iowa (82)
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ALABAMA vs MISSISSIPPI
Alabama absolutely waxed Mississippi in their regular season match-up so I expect some motivation from Mississippi in this one. I think that Alabama has a few interesting GPP options in Hall, Lewis, and Petty. I love Hall’s upside at his price point but might prefer a perimeter player as Mississippi gives up a pretty high shooting % from three. Somebody like Jones is a GPP dart play who has gone for monster games this season and his price is at an all-time low.
Mississippi is generally a pretty easy team to figure out. They rely a ton on Davis and Tyree in the backcourt. Both guys had atrocious games against Bama earlier so I think there is a chance that both come out focused. The other guy I want exposure to is Stevens because Alabama is paper thin on the interior. I might list Stevens as my favorite GPP punt play (DK) on this slate.
Preferred Plays: Stevens
PENN ST vs MINNESOTA
For PSU, we should be considering three guys in this spot. Stevens makes sense in all formats and is poised for a solid game while Reaves fits as a steady cash game who might carry higher ownership than I would like to see in GPPs based purely off of his last game. Watkins is an interesting GPP play because I believe he is going to see his minutes increased in dealing with Murphy and Oturu.
The conundrum with Minnesota is this, Murphy absolutely destroyed PSU in their regular season meeting. He put up nearly 67 fantasy points in that game. The problem is that Murphy is on the road here and that is normally an auto fade at his price point. I think I am going to view him as a GPP play instead of the cash game play he would be. If you think the road splits are strong in this neutral court game, then you have to look at using Coffey and/or Oturu. Coffey is playing extremely well, while Oturu benefits greatly when Murphy is having an off night.
Preferred Plays: Watkins, Murphy
WEST VIRGINIA vs TEXAS TECH
This spot is really tough for WVU, especially now that they are all priced up. Culver had a big game the last time these two faced off so he provides some intrigue. Haley and West are guys playing much bigger roles now so I can’t look at the previous meetings to determine fit. Both guys are in play for GPPs. Matthews Jr fits the GPP list as well thanks to being too cheap even after all of the price increases. I do not see a need to stack or mini-stack WVU now that they are priced up and in a difficult match-up. One guy we have to look for news on is Konate as he has been cleared to return by doctors.
This is a huge bump in pace for TT and that brings a lot of them into play. Jarrett Culver seems like an excellent play on this slate as he has a pretty high floor to go along with a very attractive ceiling. There is a good chance that I have either Mooney or Moretti on nearly every team that I build for tonight. Owens intrigues me for GPP purposes but foul trouble worries me while guys like Francis and Odiase are GPP dart options.
Preferred Plays: Haley, J.Culver, Mooney
ST JOHNS vs MARQUETTE
This spot seems pretty ideal for St Johns and I can’t argue using any of the 4 main guys. Ponds is in a great spot and may end up my favorite top tier play while Figueroa, Heron, and Simon are all intriguing tonight. I think that Figueroa and Heron make sense as cash options with Simon being more of a GPP play.
I think most of Marquette is a pretty easy fade. St Johns has done an excellent job against Howard over his career and I do not expect that to suddenly change tonight. Sam Hauser is the only one that I want and I actually want a lot of him. He’s been better away from home and has had solid success against St Johns this season. If you believe that Howard is going to be limited, it does make sense to consider Anim but right now he isn’t somebody I am planning on using.
Preferred Plays: Ponds, Heron, S.Hauser
LOUISVILLE vs UNC
For Louisville, we have to consider Nwora a cash safe play with GPP upside as he is playing extremely well right now. Sutton broke out a bit yesterday and put up a couple of monster games against UNC this season. He makes my GPP list as an intriguing option. Cunningham hasn’t been playing very well but the pace bump should help him out a bit.
I normally love targeting UNC but I just don’t see a lot to get overly excited about. Luke Maye is the one that I have the most interest in but his price is definitely getting up there. Johnson has GPP upside but has been mediocre against Louisville this season. White has been brutal against Louisville but as we got to see in the last Duke game, he can get hot and carry a team for stretches. Little and Williams are just GPP options for me that probably do not find their way into a lineup of mine, unless its a game stack.
Preferred Plays: Nwora, Sutton, Maye
SMU vs TULSA – DK Only
SMU has a handful of guys that I have some interest in with Whitt and McMurray being solid cash options and Mike, Chargois, and Hunt sliding into the GPP list. I normally love using McMurray and Mike from SMU as I love their upsides. You can’t leave out Chargois with the way he has been playing lately.
I wish Jeffries was 100% because I love using him but he has not looked normal since his return from a concussion. With him not being as aggressive on offense it has opened up shots for Scott, Igbanu, and Horne. Horne and Scott are my preferred options so I will get some exposure to them in GPPs. I generally never roster Igbanu but I may have to consider it with how he has been of late.
Preferred Plays: McMurray, Horne
TEXAS vs KANSAS
I feel like we need to target Texas tonight but the return of Roach II muddies things a bit. He has the ball in his hands a ton so we do not know exactly what this means for usage. The one guy that I feel comfortable targeting in GPPs is Hayes. The Kansas interior is pretty weak overall and this is a spot he could pay off handsomely. I think people will still be on Ramey and Febres but I have my reservations again. Ramey is my preferred of the two.
Kansas just doesn’t have much for excitement right now. The guards have been pretty bad since the return of Garrett. I do think D.Lawson is going to have to carry them in the postseason so he makes an excellent GPP option. I think you can use Lightfoot or McCormack as a GPP dart play for under $4K on both sites.
Preferred Plays: Hayes, D.Lawson, McCormack
SYRACUSE vs DUKE
It looks like Battle will be out again for Syracuse and that opens up a ton. I think Hughes becomes one of the more important players to their chances tonight and he fits in all formats. Howard played well against Duke in the regular season and is going to be asked to do more tonight so I definitely have GPP interest in him. Chukwu played really well last night and was pretty good against Duke in the regular season so he is somebody that is going to go overlooked at his price. I am torn on what to do with Boeheim as he went nuts last night and saw a price jump. I don’t think he is an automatic plugin for cash but his GPP upside is still really nice.
Duke against this zone is going to be interesting to figure out. If we hear that Zion is going to play a full game tonight the obvious is to rely on he and Barrett. I don’t like Tre Jones against a zone as he doesn’t shoot it particularly well and Reddish just doesn’t shoot it effectively. You could use Reddish based on the fact that he is going to take his shots. DeLaurier interests me a lot and is close to a cash play as he is replacing Bolden, who had a really strong game against Syracuse earlier.
Preferred Plays: Hughes, Howard, Zion, Barrett, DeLaurier
UCLA vs ARIZONA ST
I have a ton of GPP interest in UCLA tonight. J.Hands has been one of my favorite plays all season long and I will go back to him tonight. Singleton broke his foot yesterday and that is going to open up more minutes for Bernard. Hill has been playing extremely well with over 30 fantasy points in back to back games so we have to consider him for GPPs. Somebody like Smith is an interesting GPP dart play with his presumed increase in minutes.
My interest in ASU lies at the top of their player list. Cheatham had a monster game against UCLA and I can see that happening again against a pretty thin interior. Martin had a big game as well and should be in for a nice back and forth battle with Hands. I understand using Dort and Edwards as GPP plays but I feel like I will be passing on them tonight.
Preferred Plays: Hands, Bernard, Hill, Cheatham, Martin
GEORGETOWN vs SETON HALL
The top guys on Georgetown are capable of putting up big time stat lines in this spot and all three have done so already this season against Seton Hall. I am willing to bet that either Govan or LeBlanc put up a monster game against a really weak interior. Akinjo has been on a roll recently and I want to ride the streak.
Give me a ton of Myles Powell in this spot for the Pirates. This game makes for an excellent stack spot as I really like Mamukelashvili and Rhoden to go along with Powell. Some people might be on guys like Cale and McKnight, which makes sense but I would rather focus on the three others.
Preferred Plays: Govan, Akinjo, Powell, Rhoden
TEXAS A&M vs MISSISSIPPI ST
There are a few guys that I want to get exposure to from A&M. Flagg is playing really well right now so he makes a ton of sense in all formats while Mitchell has kind of fallen to the GPP category, which is totally fine with me. Mekowulu had a really strong game against MSU last time and has been playing really well overall. Chandler has really stepped up lately and I really like his upside for his price on this slate.
I think 5 guys are in play for MSU tonight with Perry being my favorite option. Holman had a really nice game against A&M last time out and that is something to take notice to but I still prefer Perry as the post option from MSU. Carter keeps performing and is still priced attractively and he certainly may make my cash build. Peters and Q.Weatherspoon are guys that have immense upside so we have to consider a few shares for GPPs.
Preferred Plays: Flagg, Chandler, Perry, Carter
ILLINOIS vs IOWA
Illinois really comes down to using Bezhanishvili or Dosunmu. I think you can give Feliz a look but I would prefer to use one of the two freshmen in this spot. Bezhanishvili is coming off of a monster performance yesterday and should be in a good spot tonight, as long as he avoids foul issues. Dosunmu didn’t have to do much yesterday but he had a very strong game against Iowa earlier this season.
Iowa has a ton of intrigue for GPP purposes as I keep waiting for Cook to have a monster game as their most talented player. The problem is he isn’t an alpha on offense. Bohannon seems like a guy that will relish in the conference tourney moment and may put up some impressive shooting performances. Guys like Wieskamp, Garza, and Moss all had monster performances against Illinois this season and each one makes sense for GPPs tonight. I lean to the forwards for Iowa against a soft Illinois interior.
Preferred Plays: Bezhanishvili, Cook, Garza
Make sure you tune in to the slack channel to get my updates as news comes out! We will be discussing CBB all afternoon and evening long. I will be updating my Coaches-Notes throughout the day and we will discuss what injuries we need to monitor and what they mean to our construction. I will also be posting my cores for each site in slack!