FanDuel College Basketball Daily Fantasy Helper: Wednesday 2/9/22

College basketball is in the midst of conference play, and we have a 10-game slate today.

March Madness is only a month 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 7:00 p.m. EST. All stats come from KenPom unless otherwise noted.

Which players should you be targeting and why?

Guards

Alondes Williams, Wake Forest ($8,400) - Williams' arrival in Winston Salem has transformed the Wake Forest Demon Deacons basketball program this season. The senior guard has eclipsed 35 FanDuel points in four out of his last five games. He leads the Demon Deacons with a 30.5% usage rate and a 31.9% assist rate. The matchup with North Carolina State Wolfpack is enticing; the Wolfpack enter Tuesday night ranked 239th in defensive efficiency. We could see a ceiling game from Williams.

Jake LaRavia, Wake Forest ($7,300) - LaRavia plays Robin to Williams' Batman. The junior is extremely efficient on the offensive end of the court. He is also effective on the glass and a good defender. LaRavia has an effective field goal percentage of 66.9%. He is averaging 6.5 rebounds per game (second amongst Wake Forest) and 2.5 blocks plus steals per game.

Kyler Edwards, Houston ($6,800) - Edwards is playing a ton of minutes and hoisting up a good number of shots. The senior is averaging 35.7 minutes per game over the last seven games. He's also averaging 13.9 field goal attempts over his last nine games. Further enhancing Edwards' appeal is that he is a willing passer and solid rebounder. Edwards ranks second amongst the Houston Cougars with an average of 5.9 rebounds per game and 2.7 assists per game.

Matthew Murrell, Mississippi ($5,300) - Murrell has logged at least 36 minutes in five consecutive games. During that stretch, the sophomore has averaged an eye-opening 14.0 field goal attempts per game. Throw in a matchup with the fast-paced Alabama Crimson Tide, and Murrell looks like a fantastic value at his current salary. Alabama is 17th in adjusted tempo while Ole Miss ranks 291st.

Jarkel Joiner, Mississippi ($4,800) - Joiner's return to the lineup was massive for the Mississippi Rebels after emerging star freshman Daeshun Ruffin was lost for the season. Despite missing nearly a month due to injury, Joiner immediately logged an impressive 40 minutes off the bench in Mississippi's overtime loss to the Florida Gators last Saturday. Prior to Joiner's injury, he was averaging 13.1 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 1.1 steals in 31.9 minutes of action. Roster Joiner now before his salary inevitably increases significantly.

Forwards

EJ Liddell, Ohio State ($8,600) - Liddell is having a phenomenal season for the Ohio State Buckeyes. His rates are simply stunning across the board. The junior is posting a 31.8% usage rate, 10.6% offensive rebounding rate, 18.0% defensive rebounding rate, 21.1% assist rate, and an 8.8% block rate. Simply put the combination of Liddell's floor and ceiling is unmatched on this slate.

Jack Nunge, Xavier ($6,400) - Nunge has one of the highest ceilings in college basketball. The Xavier Musketeers center is averaging an impressive 1.05 FanDuel points per minute. At that production rate, Nunge should pay off his salary in 24.4 minutes of action. The junior is averaging 29.2 minutes per game over the last six games.

Nunge's teammate, Zach Freemantle ($6,000), has seen a major increase in playing time as of late (three straight games with 36-plus minutes). His salary hasn't caught up to his expanded playing time yet.

Paul Atkinson, Notre Dame ($6,000) - Atkinson is appealing because he can rack up fantasy points in a variety of ways. He is one of college basketball's most efficient scorers (63.4% effective field goal percentage). The senior leads the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in offensive rebounding rate (9.9%) and defensive rebounding rate (19.4%). He is also an effective passer (11.1% assist rate) and solid defender (3.0% block rate). He may be forced to play as many minutes as he can handle with frontcourt mate, Nate Laszewski, listed as questionable for Wednesday's tilt.

Sydney Curry, Louisville ($4,700) - Curry leads the Louisville Cardinals in points per 40 minutes (19.6). Unfortunately, Curry is only averaging 11.1 minutes per game this season. His playing time has increased as the season progresses. The junior's production has also increased as Curry has cleared 20 FanDuel points in two straight games.

While it appears that Malik Williams will be back for Louisville on Wednesday night, it's unclear if he'll resume his normal 20 to 25-minute starting role. On the other side of the court, Cormac Ryan ($4,600) looks like a solid value play if Nate Laszewski is unable to suit up. Ryan would be a solid bet to start and log 30-plus minutes for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in that scenario.

John Fulkerson, Tennessee ($4,000) - Once upon a time, Fulkerson was one of the Tennessee Volunteers' most important players. With Olivier Nkamhoua sidelined, Fulkerson will look to turn back the clock and play a vital role. The sixth-year senior averaged 13.7 points, 5.9 rebounds, 1.3 assists, and 2.0 blocks plus steals in 30.1 minutes back during the 2019-2020 season. The bottom line -- Fulkerson is more than capable of putting up a respectable stat line. Even if he comes off the bench, he is under-salaried for his expected uptick in playing time.

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.