College Basketball Daily Fantasy Helper: Wednesday 1/15/20

College basketball season is entering conference play, and we have a ten-game slate tonight.

March Madness is months 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.

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 7:00 p.m. EST.

Which players should you be targeting, and why?

Relevant Injury Situations: Minnesota Golden Gophers center Daniel Oturu is expected to play.

Guards

Markus Howard, Marquette ($8,000) - Howard owns a monster 41.0 shot percentage and a usage rate of 37.6. Both rank inside the top three nationally according to Ken Pom. The Marquette guard leads the nation in scoring (26.8 points per game). He's one of the best plays on the slate.

Marcus Carr, Minnesota ($7,600) - Carr and big man, Daniel Oturu, form a dynamic duo for the Minnesota Golden Gophers. Carr plays heavy minutes (averaging 36.5 minutes per game) which helps solidify his floor (at least 21.6 FanDuel points in seven straight games). He owns a usage rate of 27.6 which is great for his ceiling (topped 41 FanDuel points in three out of the last nine games).

Mac McClung, Georgetown ($6,900) - Georgetown Hoyas has an extremely thin rotation due to four players leaving the program since the start of the season. McClung owns a usage rate of 27.0 and is taking 31.6% of the teams' shots when he is on the floor per Ken Pom. The matchup with Creighton Bluejays is appealing as the Georgetown guard should find himself with plenty of open looks. The Bluejays are 84th in Ken Pom's adjusted defense ratings.

Marcus Zegarowski, Creighton ($6,200) - Zegarowski plays a ton of minutes and takes a lot of shots. The Creighton guard has played at least 36 minutes in five out of the last six games. He's averaging 12.8 shot attempts per game. On tap is a juicy matchup with the fast-paced Georgetown Hoyas. The Hoyas are 36th in Ken Pom's adjusted tempo ratings while Creighton is 162nd. Georgetown also struggles on defense as they are 97th in Ken Pom's adjusted defense ratings. Teammates, Ty-Shon Alexander ($6,600) and Mitch Ballock ($6,000), are also good plays on this slate. Both guys play nearly the entire game like Zegarowski.

Jose Alvarado, Georgia Tech ($5,500) - Alvarado is averaging .72 FanDuel points per minute. At his current production rate, he'll need to play around 30.5 minutes to pay off his current price tag (assuming value is 4x of a player's price tag). The Georgia Tech point guard has played at least 33 minutes in six out of the last seven games. It also helps that he's in a good matchup against Notre Dame's struggling defense (85th in Ken Pom's adjusted defense ratings).

Gabe Kalscheur, Minnesota ($4,500) - Minnesota has a small rotation and their starters log a ton of minutes. Kalscheur is playing 33.3 minutes per game and scoring 12.3 points per game (both rank third on the team). His price has steadily declined due to poor shooting over the last four games (under 33% from the field in the last four games). The good news is that the three-point specialist should find plenty of open looks against Penn State. The Nittany Lions are allowing opponents to shoot 33.8% from outside the arc which ranks 215th in the country per Ken Pom. Fellow guard, Payton Willis ($4,400) also looks like a good source of salary relief.

Forwards

Daniel Oturu, Minnesota ($8,800) - Oturu is dominating on both ends of the court this season. The Minnesota center is averaging 19.9 points, 11.9 rebounds, 1.2 assists, and 3.5 blocks/steals in 33.1 minutes. The sophomore has posted a double-double in six out of the last eight games. He's topped 31 FanDuel points in ten consecutive games. Oturu was injured in the Golden Gophers' last game but returned to the game. He's expected to play but double-check his status prior to lock if you roster him.

Omer Yurtseven, Georgetown ($6,800) - The seven-footer is one of the best rebounders and shot blockers in the Big East conference. Yurtseven is averaging 16.5 points, 9.7 rebounds, 1.0 assists, and 2.0 blocks/steals in 26.4 minutes. Consequently, he's one of the best FanDuel fantasy points per minute producers on the slate. The big man is averaging 1.17 FanDuel fantasy points per minute. At that production rate, he should pay off his current price tag in 23.3 minutes of action. He's played at least 25 minutes in four consecutive games.

Freddie Gillespie, Baylor ($6,500) - Gillespie and the Baylor Bears are in a phenomenal spot tonight as they host the Iowa State Cyclones. The Cyclones play very fast (93rd in Ken Pom's adjusted tempo ratings) and struggle defensively (115th in Ken Pom's adjusted defense ratings). Gillespie is averaging .98 FanDuel fantasy points per minute. At his current production rate, he should pay off his price tag in 26.5 minutes of action. The Baylor forward has logged at least 29 minutes in all three Big 12 conference games this season. MaCio Teague ($6,000), Jared Butler ($6,400), and Mark Vital ($6,100) are other Baylor players to target as they are all solid plays on this slate.

Uros Plavsic, Tennessee ($3,000) - The former four-star was granted immediate eligibility on Tuesday by the NCAA. Plavsic is a seven-foot athletic center on a Tennessee team lacking size. He's been practicing with the team all season long so there shouldn't be any minutes restrictions for the big man. I have no idea what to expect in terms of playing time but his minimum salary clears up a ton of cap space. He's not a cash game play simply because we don't how he'll fit into the rotation yet. However, he is worth the roll of the dice in tournaments.

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.