This article is part of our DFS College Basketball series.
College Basketball DFS: DraftKings Picks & Preview for Wednesday, March 12
The prelude to the most wonderful time of the year is about to be in full swing, with every major conference tournament underway as of Wednesday morning. DraftKings is getting in on the action for the evening slate with a $10k Pull Up Jumper with $2k to first place. BEWARE! It's an early tip that begins at 5:50 p.m. ET -- so well before the east coast's evening commute.
Of course, value plays will open up throughout the day due to injuries, and in case you didn't know, you can filter injuries by DFS slate on RotoWire here. Here's an early look at who's questionable and out for tonight:
No longer must we research the one-off mid-majors to build complete lineups, as these are all players we should be far more experienced with. Let's take a look at some players most likely to hit value by salary tier in Wednesday's slate.
Getting ready for March Madness? For the latest in the projected field of 68 for 2025 NCAA Tournament, along with individual team previews, head to the RotoWire Bracketology page.
College Basketball DFS Top Players
Hunter Dickinson, F, Kansas ($10,400)
This isn't exciting, but the best player on the team with the highest implied point total of the day merits consideration. UCF checks in at No. 12 in KenPom's adj. tempo rating and is outside the top-100 in defensive efficiency, so Kansas players need to be in your lineup. Dickinson is the easy call, as he's a near-lock for 40-plus against an opponent that ranks in the bottom-20 nationally in defensive rebounding rate. The Knights have also been without Rokas Jocius for six games, hurting their depth inside. The only risk in spending more than 20 percent of your budget on one player is if Dickinson rests due to the game being a blowout.
Maxime Raynaud, F, Stanford ($9,600)
Save a little budget with another near-lock for 40 points who fills in another forward slot. Raynaud has been one of the best fantasy players all season, and his recent run has been no different. He's had 40 or more DK points in four of five games, including one matchup against Cal in which he wasn't particularly efficient, going 5-for-16 from the field. Cal ranks 340th in perimeter defense, and Raynaud is hitting nearly two per contest. Load up against the conference's third-worst defense in this win-or-go-home game for Stanford.
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Middle Tier
JJ Traynor, F, DePaul ($5,100)
With David Skogman out for the year and N.J. Benson a game-time call after missing six straight, Traynor has started six in a row. He scored 29 DK points against Georgetown in the regular season finale and 39.3 the game before that. The price is up, but there's a clear path to value.
Riley Kugel, G, Mississippi State ($4,900)
Kugel has started six-straight for the Bulldogs, averaging 22.1 DK points in a streak that also includes a game of 30-plus. He's also scored exactly a dozen points in three straight. There are some single-digit games in there, but we can afford a little volatility at this price, especially for a player with the second-highest usage rate among starters over the last five games.
Value Plays
Sean Stewart, F, Ohio State ($4,300)
This may be best limited to GPPs due to Stewart's frequent foul trouble, but the Ohio State starting center gets an up-tempo game against an Iowa unit that ranks outside the country's top-280 in both offensive and defensive rebounding rate. Stewart hit value with 23.5 against Iowa earlier this season and is coming off games of 25.3 and 17.3. It's getting a little cute, but Aaron Bradshaw works too as a GPP punt play at $3300.
Rylan Griffen, G, Kansas ($3,900)
Griffen has started five in a row, over which he's had a streak of three-straight games with 20+ fantasy points and has logged 32 or more minutes on three separate occasions. As mentioned above, KU has the day's highest total, so even the role players should hit value in this one.
Nils Machowski, G, UCF ($3,700)
This play banks on the fact that an injury-riddled UCF team has thrown in the towel this season and is just trying anything that sticks. Machowski has started back-to-back games after getting used sparingly all season. He had three steals in each, culminating in a 26.25 DK-point game in the regular season finale. He could easily bust and go back down to earth with Jordan Ivy-Curry back, or he could hit you 4x or rock-bottom price -- it won't take much.
For up-to-the-minute updates on injuries, roles and overall player performance, head RotoWire's latest college basketball news page or follow @RotoWireCBB on X.
