An 11-game main slate leads three different slates Saturday at DraftKings. The big prize pool comes with $15,000 in guarantees and a nice $5,000 to first place. While it's down from our mammoth tournament Tuesday, that's still plenty enticing. We tip between noon and 2:00 p.m. EST.
College Basketball DFS Picks for Saturday, February 21
This slate is a touch lower scoring than we're used to with only four games having totals north of 150 points, and two games coming in under 140. Nebraska leads the way with an 84.5-point expectancy, but the game isn't projected to be competitive, making it difficult to fully back or consider stacking. Butler, Florida and St. John's are the only other teams expected to top 80 points.
North Carolina is the big spot to watch injury wise with Henri Veesaar ($8,600) still uncertain. If he's unable to go, Zayden High ($5,300) has been very active in Veesaar's absence, and even with the rising price, there's double-double potential that makes him appealing. I'd also suggest Syracuse's Donnie Freeman ($8,000) would be a nice option with Veesaar out; he lit North Carolina up previously. There's also the elephant in the room that is Darryn Peterson ($8,100), who's priced low enough to dream on in GPPs if you think he'll play enough.
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College Basketball DFS Top Players
Tre Carroll, F, Xavier ($9,000)
Carroll is my favorite upside play Saturday from the upper tier. Over his last nine, he has a massive 32.4 percent usage rate, averaging 23.1 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 2.0 blocks. This stretch started against Butler, where he posted a massive 51.25 DKP, a game that saw 164 points scored. The expectancy here isn't quite as high, but that doesn't mean it's not possible. It's a contest where both teams should flirt with 80 points and be highly competitive, I'm just unsure how to navigate it. It seems like an obvious spot to game stack, but also not one that's incredibly sexy and could be overlooked.
Thomas Haugh, F, Florida ($8,500)
Ole Miss has lost eight straight while Florida has won six straight by at least nine points. Haugh is averaging 32.2 minutes in those six, and that's enough for me to target him as my preferred Gator; the competitive nature of the game is seemingly irrelevant to Haugh's run. He's been priced as much as $1,000 more throughout the year, so we know there's a ceiling he hasn't reached of late. He's off an absolute dud, so I'm willing to pay a touch for a bounceback. Ole Miss is bad against offensive rebounding (285th), and Haugh is inconsistent there, but has shown capable of big outputs. Give me him to get some easy stickbacks in route to 30+ DKP. Not a slate-breaking winner, but a steady set it and forget it anchor.
Pryce Sandfort, F, Nebraska ($7,800)
Nebraska has three options in the top pricing tier, and given how awful Penn State is defensively, I think it makes sense to take one of them even if I'm worried about a blowout. But which one is the challenge, and we're almost guessing on which metric to exploit for the Nittany Lions. They're 359th in 3-point defense, 352nd in 2-point defense and 334th in assists allowed to made field goals. Sandfort is coming off a game where he didn't attempt double-digit shots for just the fourth time all year, while also not collecting a rebounds. I think he's licking his chops in this matchup and should bounce back, flirt with 20 points and four or more boards. It's a great price break for a guy that's been as high as $9,600 previously.
Check out RotoWire's college basketball starting lineup data to view recent stats, usage trends and identify potential DFS value plays.
Middle Tier
Roman Siulepa, F, Pittsburgh ($6,000)
Siulepa's last five games have been inconsistent but fair at this price point, and prior to that, he had three-straight double-doubles. This is a matchup with two really bad teams that everyone is going to ignore, so we're going to get very low roster percentages. Siulepa is averaging 33 minutes over this five game peaks and valleys stretch, so we know he'll get the run needed to produce. It's not an elite matchup as the Irish are terrific against second-chance opportunities, but the price has fallen enough where we don't need more than 12 points and six rebounds for a fair return. And there's potential for far more that can win slates as a differentiating piece.
Chance Mallory, G, Virginia ($5,800)
I had zero intention of littering the upper tier with frontcourt options, but that's how things played out. So, now we need a mix of stability and potential from the mid-tier in the backcourt if this column is taken literally and building a straight lineup (that's not the goal). Mallory doesn't have a 30-point fantasy showing since mid-December, but he also hasn't been below 15 points all season, so we're flirting with a 3x floor at a minimum. I think Miami is going to be competitive here, and Virginia should flirt with 80 points as a result. Mallory doesn't do anything at an elite level, but has multiple paths to fantasy stability.
Myles Colvin, G, Wake Forest ($5,600)
This is yet another game on the slate that should be close and relatively high scoring, but has no clear option to target. The Hokies' Neoklis Avdalas ($5,800) is a flavor I can't seem to quit, but Colvin comes cheaper, seemingly has the safer floor and a similar ceiling with more recent history of hitting it. He's scored in double-digits in 10 of his last 16 while adding 4.9 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.6 steals across 28.8 minutes.
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College Basketball DFS Value Plays
Patton Pinkins, G, Ole Miss ($4,200)
Overall, the Rebels seem to be rotating a plethora of guards with next to no success. But, Pinkins has averaged 28.6 minutes over the last five (albeit with a meager 15.2 percent usage rate), and for this price, I'm willing to pay for minutes and hope production comes with. Their season is over, they gain nothing by not seeing what they have in the freshman, who has scored in double-digits in three of the last five. Pinkins is just one of a handful of dart throw, low end options to shoot for a 4x return or better while getting you as many big options as possible.
Joson Sanon, G, St. John's ($3,700)
In 26 games, Sanon has topped 20 DKP just six times, so don't think he's an immediate plug and play with Ian Jackson out. But the price is low enough he doesn't need massive upside to allow you some savings. He saw 26 minutes in his last start, and this game doesn't figure to be particularly close, potentially allowing Sanon plenty of run and garbage time production while the bigger Red Storm names rest late in the contest.
Fedor Zugic, G, Creighton ($3,700)
Zugic is off a season-high 21.25 DKP in his first career start. Creighton isn't likely to be competive here, and it's anyone's guess if that last outing is sustainable, but for the price, it seems worth chasing. He's quietly amassed a 23.4 percent usage rate over the last five, returning 4.6x in three of those. Assuming the Blue Jays aren't keeping up, there's minimal reason for Creighton to not continue playing Zugic and see what they may have in him.
