College basketball season is finally upon us, and DraftKings and FanDuel continue to provide sizeable contests for DFS grinders. Examining the slate for Jan. 15, a number of core plays stand out. In this piece I’ll be locating top plays from each college basketball matchup and determining the top CBB DFS picks for your DraftKings and FanDuel lineups.
[GRETZKY]
[SportsbookAffiliates]
CBB DFS Picks: DraftKings + FanDuel Core Plays | Jan. 15
Bowling Green vs. Buffalo
Bowling Green (77.5 Team Total)
Easily the best game on the slate, the total sits at 159.5 points with an above-average pace. Taking multiple players from this game makes sense, and Justin Turner ($7,900) stands out as a supreme value with his slate-leading 25.3% usage rate. Discounted compared to other studs, Turner should push for most owned player on the slate. Behind Turner, Bowling Green runs a narrow rotation of Daeqwon Plowden ($6,900), Kaden Metheny ($5,500), and Caleb Fields ($4,800). Of this group, Metheny possesses the best usage at 14%. He also has a 15.5% shot rate in Bowling Green’s last three games. The others make sense as GPP dart throws, with this game providing the best environment for DFS.
Buffalo (82 Team Total)
Leading the slate with an 82-point implied team total, Buffalo actually already lost to Bowling Green this year, but Josh Mballa ($8,400) missed the game. Mballa has a 20% usage rate and should dominate a Bowing Green defense that ranks 196 in interior defense. Jeenathan Williams ($8,200) and Jayvon Graves ($8,300) also possess usage rates of 20.9% and 20.6%, respectively. Graves has handled 22.4% of the shots to Williams 20.7% of the shots in Buffalo’s last three games. Both can be used in all formats, with a slight lean to Graves. Ronaldo Segu ($6,000) rounds out the rotation with a 15% usage rate. Segu has played at least 28 minutes in each of Buffalo’s last three games, putting him into GPP consideration. Sixth man Keishawn Brewton ($4,400) could also be used as a pure punt play.
Duquesne vs. St. Bonaventure
Duquesne (63 Team Total)
A team undergoing internal turmoil, Duquesne has already lost Sincere Carry, Lamar Norman and Maceo Austin this season. Without that trio, Marcus Weathers ($6,200) leads Duquesne in usage at 19.5%. He also draws a solid matchup against a St Bonaventure team that ranks 308th in interior defense. Behind Weathers, Tavian Dunn-Martin ($5,700) plays nearly every minute with a 17.2% usage rate. Behind this pairing, Michael Hughes ($5,900), Toby Okani ($5,000) and Chad Baker ($4,000) play the most minutes, but all are seldom used. Hughes is the best of the bunch, but saving $200 with Dunn-Martin looks like the superior play. Sixth man Ryan Murphy ($3,000) enters the discussion at the stone minimum, but his ceiling is 20 minutes.
St. Bonaventure (71.5 Team Total)
Anthony Roberts ($4,200) enters this game with the questionable tag, after missing St. Bonaventure’s most recent game with a personal matter. Either way, Jaren Holmes ($8,500) dominates the usage here. Playing almost every minute, Holmes makes sense with his 19.6% shot rate. Behind Holmes, Osun Osunniyi ($7,000), Jalen Adaway ($6,800), Dominick Welch ($6,600) and Kyle Lofton ($6,800) all play almost every minute. Welch and Lofton provide the best price-adjusted usage among this bunch. Welch handles over 15% usage in shots, rebounds and assists. Meanwhile, Lofton played at least 34 minutes in four straight games. All make sense as tournament plays here.
UTEP vs. North Texas
UTEP (64.25 Team Total)
Another middling game with a slow pace, UTEP is a 6-point underdog. Luckily, most of their usage is concentrated through two players. Jamal Bieniemy ($7,300) and Souley Boum ($7,000) enter this contest with 21+% usage rates. Both also play every single minute, but Bieniemy has now scored at least 16 points in three straight games, giving him an edge in this spot. Bryson Williams ($7,300) offers GPP appeal, but his usage remains behind Boum and Bieniemy. Meanwhile, Keonte Kennedy ($5,400) looks like a solid price-adjusted play with his increasing rates. In UTEP’s last three games, Kennedy has an 18% shot rate, 18% rebound rate and 17% assist rate. Tydus Verhoeven ($5,500) rounds out the starting five, but Kennedy is the better play.
North Texas (70.25 Team Total)
A solid mismatch here, North Texas ranks 90th in offensive efficiency, while UTEP ranks 244th in defensive efficiency. Most of North Texas’ usage flows through Javion Hamlet ($7,100), who is underpriced with a 22.5% usage rate. North Texas also runs a tight rotation, featuring James Reese ($6,300), Thomas Bell ($6,100), Mardrez McBride ($4,900) and Zachary Simmons ($5,300). Simmons has fallen out of favor lately, making Reese and Bell the preferred ancillary plays. With neither eclipsing a 15% usage rate, both are GPP fliers.
Wisconsin vs. Rutgers
Wisconsin (68.75 Team Total)
Somewhat narrowing their starting lineup, D’Mitrik Trice ($7,400) has emerged as the usage leader for Wisconsin. Trice has played at least 33 minutes in three straight games, while handling 20.5% of the team’s shots. Behind Trice, Micah Potter ($6,400), Nate Reuvers ($4,500), Aleem Ford ($5,100) and Brad Davison ($4,700) all play mid-20 minutes. Potter easily possesses the best usage rate but seldom eclipses 26 minutes. Jonathan Davis ($4,200) actually has played at least 26 minutes in three straight games as Wisconsin’s sixth man and warrants punt appeal.
Rutgers (66.25 Team Total)
On Rutgers, Ron Harper ($7,800) leads the team with a 23.3% usage rate, including 22% of the team’s shots. Also playing over 33 minutes per game, Harper presents another stud worth considering on this slate. Geo Baker ($6,100) has also emerged as a legitimate weapon for Rutgers after starting the year injured. Now in the starting lineup, Baker has a 19.5% usage rate. Jacob Young ($7,200) also makes some sense with his 20.8% usage rate, but finding the extra salary for Harper or saving with Baker looks like the superior move. Myles Johnson ($6,700) and Montez Mathis ($5,200) round out he starting five, but both struggle to eclipse 25 minutes. Mathis presents the superior usage rate at a cheaper price.
Fresno State vs. Nevada
Fresno State (65 Team Total)
Another middling game total, Fresno State enters this contest as a 6.5-point underdog. Orlando Robinson ($9,500) is the most expensive player on the slate. He has a 21.3% usage rate and averages 20% rates across the major statistical categories. However, with an abundance of alpha scorers on the slate, paying $9,500 for Robinson looks risky. Behind Robinson, Fresno State rotates 10 players onto the floor. Isaiah Hill ($5,100) would be the next safest after playing 27-plus minutes in three straight games. He also has a 15.5% usage rate, which makes him viable as a cheaper play. Outside of that, Fresno State is a low implied underdog with a nasty rotation.
Nevada (71.5 Team Total)
Unlike Fresno State, almost all of Nevada’s usage comes from two players. Grant Sherfield ($8,800) and Desmond Cambridge ($7,500) possess usage rates over 22% and play nearly every minute. Sherfield holds an edge here with his massive 40.6% assist rate, but both offer solid pay-up options. Tre Coleman ($4,300) plays the next most consistent minutes, but he purely wind-sprints up and down the court. The rest of the team rotates and offers little upside from a usage perspective.
Follow us on all of our social channels! Check out our Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube for more great Awesemo content.
Looking for more college basketball CBB DFS picks content? We have loads of CBB DFS Picks articles, data, DraftKings and FanDuel cheat sheets and more on the Awesemo CBB DFS home page. Just click HERE.
