College Basketball Daily Fantasy Helper: Thursday 11/18/21

College basketball is back, and we have a four-game slate today.

March Madness is a ways away, 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.

Scoring differs from NBA in the blocks and steals categories; each is worth two FanDuel points apiece rather than the three you get in NBA contests.

Now that you're in the know, we can attack today's slate, which locks at 6:00 p.m. EST. All stats come from KenPom unless otherwise noted.

Which players should you be targeting and why?

Guards

JD Notae, Arkansas ($7,700) - Notae is a guard that will play nearly the entire game and contribute on both ends of the court. The sophomore leads the Arkansas Razorbacks in usage rate (25.3%) and shot rate (31.9% - percent of the team's shot attempts when the player is on the floor). Additionally, he is solid rebounder and ball distributor. Notae owns an 11.4% defensive rebounding rate and a 19.8% assist rate. He is easily my favorite play on the slate when considering salary.

Nigel Pack, Kansas State ($6,600) - Pack is producing 1.03 FanDuel points per minute. At that production rate, he should pay off his salary in 25.6 minutes of action. Pack averaged 33.5 minutes per game a season ago. Additionally, this is a major pace up spot for the Kansas State Wildcats. Kansas State ranks 270th in adjusted tempo while Arkansas checks in at 53rd.

Au'Diese Toney, Arkansas ($6,100) - Toney is a safe play despite his relatively low usage rate (14.8%). He plays a ton of minutes and is an efficient scorer (effective field goal percentage of 65.8%). Toney has played at least 37 minutes in two out of three games this season. Additionally, he is tied for the team lead with 7.3 rebounds per game. The matchup with Kansas State is appealing. The Wildcats rank 76th in defensive efficiency.

Chase Audige, Northwestern ($5,300) - This recommendation comes with an asterisk. Audige has missed four straight games and he might not play on Monday night. However, this slate is starved for viable salary relief. If Audige does play, he makes for an interesting play. He is one of the best two-way players in the Big Ten. Audige led the Northwestern Wildcats with a 27.1% usage rate last season. He also posted an 11.9% defensive rebounding rate, 14.6% assist rate, and a 3.2% steal rate in 2020. If Audige is out, I think Markquis Nowell ($5,300) makes for an intriguing pivot. Nowell's usage rate (25.0%) and assist rate (40.3%) stand out. The only thing that is holding him back is playing time. Nowell has only logged 44 minutes through two games. If his minutes spike up, he could blow away his current salary.

Jeremiah Davenport, Cincinnati ($5,200) - Davenport will be popular at his current salary. The Cincinnati Bearcats guard is only averaging 22.0 minutes per game. However, that is a result of several Bearcats blowout wins. The junior averaged 27.0 minutes per game a season ago. Monday night's contest with the Illinois Fighting Illini should be competitive. Davenport is leading the Bearcats with an average of 12.5 points per game this season.

Malaki Branham, Ohio State ($4,200) - As I mentioned above, this slate is starved for salary-saving options. The Ohio State Buckeyes freshman is a potential salary-saver. Branham was a consensus four-star recruit. He has a starting role and played 28 minutes in Ohio State's latest game. The Buckeyes guard also hoisted 11 field goal attempts in that game. If Branham can start knocking down shots, he'll easily pay off his bargain basement salary. Branham is only shooting 35.3% from the field through four games.

Forwards

Colin Castleton, Florida ($8,700) - Castleton is posting an impressive 1.52 FanDuel points per minute. The senior center has recorded a double-double in four out of his last five games, dating back to last season. He could corral a ton of rebounds against the California Golden Bears. The Golden Bears STRUGGLE shooting the ball. They are posting an effective rebounding rate of 47.1% (214th nationally). Additionally, Castleton should feast on California's vulnerable defense. The Golden Bears rank 74th in defensive efficiency.

Jaylin Williams, Arkansas ($6,800) - I loved targeting Williams last season because he doesn't need the ball to impact the box score. The Razorbacks forward is a force on both ends of the court. Williams is an averaging an impressive 1.03 FanDuel points per minute. Assuming value is four times a player salary, Williams should pay off his salary in 26.4 minutes of action. The sophomore logged 30 minutes in the Razorbacks lone competitive game of the season (season opener against Mercer Bears).

Anthony Duruji, Florida ($6,500) - Duruji has a few variables working in his favor. Florida has played a relatively tight rotation so far this season. There are only six Gators who are averaging more than 10.0 minutes per game. Morever, Duruji is an efficient scorer, excellent rebounder, and a solid defender. He has an effective field goal percentage of 58.3%. Further enhancing his appeal is the fact that both of his rebounding rates are north of 10%. Finally, he owns a 4.8% block rate.

Kyle Young, Ohio State ($5,200) - Young is the Buckeyes' glue guy and his role is vital with Justice Sueing sidelined indefinitely. While he is the sixth man, Young is playing starters' minutes. The senior logged 32 minutes sans Sueing. Young scored 12 points, collected six rebounds, dished out one assist, and blocked a shot. He is one of the better sources of salary relief on Monday night.

I also like Jacob Grandison ($5,300) if you need to save salary at forward. Grandison is averaging .82 FanDuel points per minute. His usage rate will likely take a hit with star center Kofi Cockburn ($8,300) expected to make his season debut on Monday night. Cockburn is also a good option if you're looking to invest in a high-end forward. He will be less popular than Colin Castleton.

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.