FanDuel College Basketball Daily Fantasy Helper: Thursday 2/24/22

March Madness is on the horizon, but you can get into college hoops today by playing daily contests at FanDuel.

If you've played NBA DFS before, college basketball DFS is similar. You pick a total of eight players -- four guards, three forwards, and one utility spot. Stay within the $50,000 salary cap, and field the team you think will score the most fantasy points.

The scoring settings differ from NBA in the blocks and steals categories; each is worth two FanDuel points, rather than the three you get in NBA contests.

Now that you're in the know, let's attack today's main slate. All betting lines come from NCAAB odds.

Guards

Bennedict Mathurin, Arizona ($8,400) - There are two teams that stand out on this slate -- Arizona and Gonzaga. Mathurin is a high-salary way to get exposure to the Wildcats, who are on the road against Utah. The Utes ranks 151st in adjusted defense, per KenPom, and 'Zona holds a juicy 80.75-point implied total. Mathurin is in the midst of a nice run, scoring 37.5, 27.9 and 39.9 FanDuel points across his last three games. His 24.0% usage rate checks in second on the team, according to Sports-Reference, and he's logged at least 30 minutes in six straight games.

Boogie Ellis, USC ($6,000) - Ellis is expected to play tonight after suffering an injury scare at practice, and this is a money spot for Southern Cal as they face an Oregon State defense that ranks 297th. Ellis gets you a modest-salaried piece of USC, and he's seen 36 and 33 minutes in his past two outings, totaling 24.9 and 27.3 FanDuel points in those games. He's put up at least 22.4 FanDuel points in five of USC's last seven games.

Tevin Brown, Murray State ($5,900) - Murray State (236th in adjusted tempo) is in a pace-up spot against Belmont (79th). The game has a 144.5-point total and 3.0-point spread. Brown has had some off games of late, but he's averaging 29.4 FanDuel points for the campaign and gets huge minutes -- at least 37 in three of the Racers' past four contests. He tagged Belmont for 30.7 FanDuel points the last time these two met up.

Julian Strawther, Gonzaga ($4,900) - The Zags are a team I'm prioritizing. They're only 10.0-point favorites in what should be a tough road test at San Francisco. The Dons sit 24th overall in KenPom's rankings and are a decent 86th in pace, so we will likely get a full game of pedal-to-the-metal Gonzaga. As such, the Bulldogs have an 83.50-point implied total. Sign me up. We'll hit on the Zags' high-salary forwards in a second, but Strawther intrigues me. The salary is nice, and his 19.2% usage rate isn't too shabby.

Forwards

Drew Timme, Gonzaga ($8,300) - Timme and Chet Holmgren ($8,600) are stellar options. I side with Timme. While he doesn't grab as many boards or block as many shots as Holmgren does, Timme's 29.7% usage rate is 8.0 percentage points higher than the star freshman's. Timme has posted at least 41.1 FanDuel points in two of his last three games, and he produced 42.0 FanDuel points in 38 minutes in the Zags' last game that was decided by 10 or fewer points (although -- incredibly -- that was back on December 4th).

Yauhen Massalski, San Francisco ($7,800) - San Francisco's implied total of 73.0 points is appealing, especially if you're going with multiple Zags and banking on the Dons to keep things close. Massalski will have his hands full against Holmgren and Timme, but he's shown nice upside this season, going off for at least 35.0 FanDuel points in 11 games. Prior to his last two outings, Massalski had recorded at least 37.5 FanDuel points in five of seven games. You can also make a case for Trayce Jackson-Davis ($8,100) or Kofi Cockburn ($8,200) at the top end of the forward player pool.

Jalen Duren, Memphis ($6,100) - Duren has been a consistent cog for Memphis. He leads the Tigers in scoring at 11.4 points per night and adds 7.5 rebounds. His 21.0% usage rate is a solid clip, as well. Duren has generated at least 22.8 FanDuel points in six of his last seven appearances, and he's averaging 25.0 for the season. Memphis carries a 74.25-point implied total -- the fourth-highest of the slate -- into a clash with Temple.

Coleman Hawkins, Illinois ($3,900) - Hawkins is a bit of a shot in the dark as his minutes off the bench can vary wildly for Illinois. His role is trending upwards, though. After a four-game span in which he never broke 10 minutes, Hawkins has played at least 13 minutes in three straight. He's taken nine total shots across the last two games and owns a respectable 18.6% usage rate for the year. Hawkins is a low-salary way to get in on an Illini team that has a 73.25-point implied total at home against Ohio State.