The college basketball slate for Wednesday, Feb. 16 has superstars and big-name teams up and down the lineup tonight with Alabama, Auburn and Marquette. As always, this article will be breaking down all of the best CBB picks for DraftKings and FanDuel fantasy college basketball lineups tonight and going over some of the best plays from each pricing range. If you are looking to take your game to the next level, be sure to check out our daily CBB DFS projections over at the Awesemo College Basketball page.
CBB DFS Picks: DraftKings & FanDuel Fantasy Basketball
Stud CBB Picks Today
Justin Lewis ($8,300) — With Gonzaga and Auburn both running the risk of playing their starters limited minutes in potential blowouts, looking at some slightly cheaper studs could make sense here. One particular option is Marquette’s Justin Lewis. Coming off a horrific loss to Butler, Marquette finds themselves in a bounce-back spot as 13-point favorites over Georgetown in a game with a 152.5-point total. Lewis has now played 37, 36 and 36 minutes in three straight games for Marquette, maximizing his 18.5% usage rate. Lewis has also contributed a 25.3% shot rate, 32.9% rebound rate and 11.8% assist rate in that span. Projecting among the elite players on this slate, Lewis remains underpriced against Georgetown’s 289th ranked defense.
Julian Champagnie ($7,800) — Another strong game environment, St. John’s takes on Xavier as a 7.5-point underdog in a game with a 148.5-point total. Quiet of late, Julian Champagnie looks like a positive regression candidate in this spot. Xavier ranks 42nd in defensive efficiency, but Champagnie has played 37, 31 and 35 minutes in St. John’s last three games. Importantly, the rates have remained constant in this span. Champagnie’s 24% shot rate and 21.6% rebound rate are actually up compared to his season averages. St. John’s may also play this game without Posh Alexander, who missed each of the last two contests. Vacating 19% of the usage himself, Champagnie remains the primary beneficiary in terms of usage.
Champagnie was leading the way as one of the best CBB picks on the entire slate, according to the Awesemo DFS basketball lineup optimizer. For all of our free CBB DFS picks today, check out the DraftKings CBB Cheat Sheet and FanDuel CBB Cheat Sheet.
Jack Nunge ($7,200) — On the other side of the St. John’s game, Xavier holds a 78-point implied team total as the favorites in this uptempo game environment. Importantly, Xavier has also narrowed their rotation of late, giving Jack Nunge, Paul Scruggs, Colby Jones and Zach Freemantle extra minutes. In particular, Nunge has played 35, 35 and 33 minutes in three straight games for Xavier. In this span, he has an 18.8% shot rate, 24.7% rebound rate and 10.5% assist rate. The only knock against Nunge here is the price, with Scruggs at $6,900 and Freemantle at $6,200. For reference, Scuggs has a 20.1% shot rate, 18.8% rebound rate and 29% assist rate over Xavier’s last three. Freemantle has a 20.8% shot rate and 18.9% rebound rate over Xavier’s last three. Using at least one of these Xavier pieces makes sense in this game environment.
Mid-Range CBB Picks Today
Adama Sanogo ($5,800) — Potentially the best price-adjusted play on the entire slate, Adama Sanogo finds himself at $5,800 after battling foul trouble in recent games. Before his recent struggles, Sanogo routinely played over 30 minutes for this team. He also has a 17% usage rate. Over UConn’s last three games, he has contributed a 20.2% shot rate and 22.9% rebound rate, despite the limited minutes. In a full game, Sanogo has the upside of an $8,000 player. He also benefits from a matchup against a struggling Seton Hall team. UConn is a six-point favorite in a game with a 138-point total, putting Sanogo squarely in play.
DJ Jeffries ($5,400) — Another strong game environment, Mississippi State takes on Alabama as a 6.5-point underdog in a game with a 149.5-point total. Despite coming in as the underdog, Mississippi State has a serviceable 71.5-point team total against Alabama’s struggling 217th ranked defense. Among the Mississippi State players, DJ Jeffries looks like the top price-adjusted play. Jeffries has played 32, 34 and 35 minutes in three straight games for Mississippi State. While he only has a 13.1% usage rate this year, Jeffries has contributed a 13.5% shot rate, 15.6% rebound rate and 18.4% assist rate in Mississippi State’s last three. With upside across statistical categories, Jeffries is a fairly strong play here. For those with extra salary, Garrison Brooks has seen a drastic increase in usage in recent weeks as well.
Nick Jourdain ($5,200) — Temple enters tonight’s slate as a 4.5-point underdog to SMU in a game with a 137-point total. Already dealing with injuries to Khalif Battle and Jake Forrester, Temple also played their most recent game without Damian Dunn and Jeremiah Williams. Both of these studs are allegedly game-time decisions tonight. One beneficiary in this offense is Nick Jourdain. Jourdain has already played 37, 22 and 35 minutes in Temple’s last three games. He also has a 17.4% shot rate and 23.2% rebound rate in that span. Now capable of taking on extra work, Jourdain should be an elite play without either Dunn or Williams. The other primary beneficiaries are Jahlil White, Zach Hicks and Hysier Miller.
CBB Value Picks Today
Flo Thamba ($4,600) — A potential matchup to find some value, Baylor is a two-point underdog to Texas Tech in a game with a 135.5-point total. Even as an underwhelming underdog, Baylor looks like a potential value spot with injuries to LJ Cryer and Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua. In Baylor’s most recent outing, Tchatchoua went down after just five minutes, allowing Flo Thamba to play 30 minutes. Thamba is a pure rebounder, contributing a 20.2% rebounding rate over Baylor’s last three. While his shot rate lags at 7.6%, even a small increase could give Thamba some double-double equity. It should be noted that Jeremy Sochan also battled foul trouble in Baylor’s most recent game, logging just 20 points. It remains to be seen if Thamba will continue to play elevated minutes, but this is a spot to potentially take a shot on in GPPs.
Olivier-Maxence Prosper ($4,200) — For those looking at cheaper plays in the Marquette game, Olivier-Maxence Prosper has begun playing a larger role for this team. Prosper has played 25, 31 and 24 minutes in Marquette’s last three games, contributing a 10% shot rate and 12.2% rebound rate. While the rates leave a little to be desired, the weak value on this slate props up Prosper here. Another concern is Marquette’s willingness to use ten player rotations with continually shifting minute counts. Still, Marquette’s elite team total puts Prosper into play here.
Mylik Wilson ($3,000) — On a poor value slate, Texas Tech may have a potential option at the stone minimum. Mylik Wilson has now played 17, 24 and 21 minutes in each of the Red Raiders’ last three games. Mostly a peripheral player, Wilson posted a 4.3% shot rate, 8.9% rebound rate and 20% assist rate in that span. Kevin McCullar is questionable for tonight’s tilt, potentially increasing some of those numbers here. While dependent on injury, Wilson opens a unique construction to those willing to wait for the late news.
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