College Basketball Daily Fantasy Helper: Monday 3/9/20

College basketball season starts Championship week this week, and we have a two-game slate tonight.

March Madness is right around the corner, but you can get in all the college hoops hype by playing daily contests at FanDuel today. If you've played NBA DFS before, it's quite simple: pick a total of eight players -- four guards, three forwards, and one utility spot you can use for either position. Stay within the $50,000 salary cap and field the team you think will score the most fantasy points.

Where scoring differs from NBA is in the blocks and steals categories, with each worth two FanDuel points apiece rather than the three you get in daily NBA contests.

Now that you're in the know, we can attack today's main slate, which locks at 9:00 p.m. EST.

Which players should you be targeting, and why?

Known Relevant Injury Situations: None.

Guards

Jordan Ford, Saint Mary's (CA) ($7,500) - Ford is an intriguing target because he rarely leaves the floor and takes a TON of shots. In five out of the last six games, Ford has played the entire game. He owns a 26.6% usage rate; he's also taking 30.8% of the team's shots when he's on the floor, per KenPom. Over the last four games, he's averaging 41.88 FanDuel points.

TJ Haws, BYU ($6,900) - Haws has been on a tear as of late. He's eclipsed 24 FanDuel points in 10 consecutive games. Over the last four games, the Brigham Young Cougars guard is averaging 17.25 points, 2.75 rebounds, 10.0 assists, and 2.0 steals/blocks in 35.5 minutes. I'm expecting Haws' stellar play to continue against the Saint Mary's (CA) Gaels vulnerable defense. The Gaels are 110th in KenPom's adjusted defense ratings. Jake Toolson is also a fine play at $7,000.

Ryan Woolridge, Gonzaga ($6,000) - The Gonzaga point guard is intriguing because he plays a ton of minutes and has the ability to contribute in every statistical category. Wooldridge is averaging 10.1 points, 4.6 rebounds, 4.5 assists, and 1.7 steals/blocks in 32.7 minutes this season. Over the last five games, he's averaging 24.5 FanDuel points. Backcourt mate Joel Ayayi ($5,900) is also worth a look in Wooldridge's price range.

Charles Minlend, San Francisco ($5,600) - I'm slightly concerned that the San Francisco Dons will be playing their third game in four days as they take on the Gonzaga Bulldogs in the West Coast Conference semi-finals. However, Minlend looks like a decent value play as he leads the Dons with a 26.6% usage rate, per KenPom. Additionally, the junior is averaging .8 FanDuel points per minute. At that production clip, he is expected to pay off his price tag in 28 minutes of action. Minlend is averaging 29.4 minutes this season. Minlend's teammate, Jamaree Bouyea ($6,300), is also a solid play.

Admon Gilder, Gonzaga ($5,000) - With a slate-leading implied team total of 83, Gonzaga is a great team to target. Additionally, the Zags' rotation usually goes only seven men deep. Gilder is the cheapest amongst the bunch, and he's averaging 10.7 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.5 steals/blocks in 25.7 minutes this season. He's a solid play against San Francisco's susceptible defense (88th in KenPom's adjusted defense ratings).

Tanner Krebs, Saint Mary's (CA) $4,600) - While his usage rate is rather low (16.1% per KenPom), Krebs is one of the safer "cheap" guards as he's likely to be on the floor for nearly the entire game. The Gaels guard has logged 37-plus minutes in three out of the last five games. In those five games, Krebs averaged 8.1 field goal attempts. His viability is further enhanced, as this is a huge pace-up game for Saint Mary's (CA). Saint Mary's (CA) is 339th in KenPom's adjusted tempo ratings, while BYU is 104th.

Other guards to consider ($5,000 and below): Tommy Kuhse, Khalil Shabazz, Zac Seljaas, Alex Barcello, and Jordan Ratinho.

Forwards

Yoeli Childs, BYU ($8,600) - Childs owns a monster 34.9% usage rate, which ranks eighth nationally, per KenPom. The BYU star is averaging 1.3 FanDuel points per minute. At that production clip, he is expected to pay off his price tag in 26.5 minutes of action. Childs has logged 27-plus minutes in six out of the last seven games. He's topped 40 FanDuel points in three consecutive games. The BYU big man is expensive, but he's worth the pricey investment.

Filip Petrusev, Gonzaga ($7,300) - Sporting a 30.9% usage rate (leads team per KenPom), Petrusev has the ability to rack up fantasy points in a hurry. The only drawback is his minutes rarely dip into the low 30's. However, with Gonzaga now entering West Coast Conference tournament play, there's a chance his minutes get extended into the low 30's. Additionally, Petrusev averaged 32.55 FanDuel points in two games against San Francisco this season.

Malik Fitts, Saint Mary's (CA) ($6,700) - Fitts is a force on both ends of the court for the Gaels. The junior has a 24.3% usage rate, and he's taking 25.0% of the team's shots when he's on the floor, per KenPom. In two games against BYU this season, Fitts averaged 23.0 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 2.0 steals in 35.0 minutes.

Corey Kispert, Gonzaga ($6,200) - Over the last five games, Kispert is averaging 16.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.2 steals/blocks in 36.4 minutes. The sharpshooter should have plenty of open looks from long range against the Dons. Kispert is knocking down 44.3% of his three-point attempts while San Francisco is allowing their opponents to convert 37.9% from beyond the arc (341st in the country, per KenPom). Killian Tillie ($6,500) is also a good play on this slate.

Other forward to consider ($5,000 and below): Dan Fotu.

Matthew Hiatt is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Matthew Hiatt also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username easternmh. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his articles are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.