Happy Valentine's Day! There is nothing that we would love more on this holiday dedicated to love to pick some winners for you. March is just a couple of weeks away, so Big Dance tickets are close to being punched, and there is plenty of jockeying being done in terms of conference tournament seeding.
There are plenty of matchups between ranked teams, including Clemson at Duke, Kansas at Iowa State, and Kentucky at Florida. If you are going to stay up late, you might want to take in Gonzaga at Santa Clara. The Broncos have just one loss in the WCC on Jan. 8 to the Zags in Spokane. Revenge could be in the air.
While the picks below largely stay away from players who are game-time calls, you can pop over to RotoWire's College Basketball Injury Report to get the latest on players like Kansas' mercurial guard Darryn Peterson. He missed the win over Arizona this week due to illness. We know that Tar Heel forward phenom Caleb Wilson will not play against Pitt due to a fractured hand. Luka Bogavac could return to the Tar Heel starting lineup. It might be wise to check out the Top News Reports before setting your lineup.
College Basketball DFS Picks for Saturday, February 14
We have early and late afternoon challenges as well as evening games. There are so many players to pick from that it feels like you almost can't go wrong. Let us narrow your choices a bit by spotlighting the following nine options.
Want to see how recent injuries might affect the top DFS plays in college basketball? Head to RotoWire's latest college basketball injury news page or follow @RotoWireCBB on X.
College Basketball DFS Top Players
Rueben Chinyelu, F, Florida ($9,100)
It is not that surprising that Chinyelu has become the leading rebounder in the SEC. He is also in a virtual tie with Kent State's Delrecco Gillespie as the nation's best boardman. The mild surprise is what Chinyelu has provided on offense. The 6-foot-10 junior is matching his rebounding average of 11.8 with the same number of points. He has only been held to single-digit scoring twice in SEC play. While Kentucky has big bodies to match up with Chinyelu, Malachi Moreno and Brandon Garrison will be hard pressed to limit the Gators center. Last year as a sophomore, Chinyelu had 10 points and eight boards in a high-scoring loss to Kentucky.
Ja'Kobi Gillespie, G, Tennessee ($8,700)
There is a chance that neither of LSU's starting guards, Dedan Thomas and Max Mackinnon, plays on Saturday at Knoxville. If they do play, they will not be at full strength, and that should play into Gillespie's hands. The Volunteers starting point guard has the perpetual green light and has hit 11 3-pointers in his last three games. His 3-point percentage leaps by almost 10 points at home (38.2 percent vs. 29.7 percent). In addition to his scoring exploits (18.5 points), the 6-foot-1 senior leads the team with 5.3 assists and 1.6 steals per game.
Brayden Burries, G, Arizona ($8,500)
It will be interesting to see how the Wildcats respond to their first loss of the season. Burries continued his ascendency to the top option in the Arizona offense, even in the loss to Kansas. He scored a team-high 25 points, his fourth 20-point game in Big 12 play. The 6-foot-4 guard is a proficient 3-point shooter (38.1 percent), but he does the majority of his offensive damage within the arc. He may be matched up against Horned Frogs guard Christian Anderson who Burries may be able to bully.
Need help filling in the rest of your picks and constructing college basketball lineups? Head to the RotoWire college basketball DFS lineup optimizer to find value plays, build stacks and export up to 150 lineups directly to DraftKings or FanDuel.
Middle Tier
Roman Siulepa, F, Pittsburgh ($6,200)
With Wilson out, it may be tempting to go with a Tar Heel forward. My guess is that his offensive opportunities are divvied throughout the UNC roster. As noted in the Waiver Wire Report earlier this week, Siulepa has been putting up pleasant numbers for the Panthers in a down season. The 6-foot-6 freshman put himself on the map with three straight double-doubles in late-January. He is coming off a 19-point performance in a loss to Duke on Tuesday. The Aussie might be able to take advantage of a team playing its first game without its most valuable player.
Tyler Nickel, G/F, Vanderbilt ($6,100)
Nickel is a high-ceiling player because he has the ability to hit 3-pointers in bunches. With Duke Miles and Frankie Collins out due to knee injuries, the Commodores will be looking for players to take the offensive onus off of Tyler Tanner. Nickel has been able to step up. The 6-foot-7 senior has nailed 44.1 percent of his 3-pointers on 7.5 attempts per game. In an upset win against the Aggies last season, Nickel nailed seven treys to account for all of his 21 points. He has hit five or more 3-pointers five times this season.
Oswin Erhunmwunse, F, Providence ($6,000)
When Providence and St. John's met on Jan. 3, the Friars had few answers for Zuby Ejiofor. The problem for the Red Storm is no one else stepped up and the Friars were able to win despite 33 points and 15 rebounds from Ejiofor. Erhunmwunse held his own with 10 points and nine rebounds despite playing just 26 minutes. The 6-foot-10 sophomore recently had a string of seven straight double-digit rebounding game streak snapped as he only corralled eight boards in a scoreless game in the loss to Seton Hall on Wednesday. He leads the Big East with 2.4 blocks.
Want to see how recent injuries might affect the top DFS plays in college basketball? Head to RotoWire's latest college basketball injury news page or follow @RotoWireCBB on X.
College Basketball DFS Value Plays
Reese Dixon-Waters, G, San Diego State ($5,300)
The Aztecs are playing their last round of Mountain West games before they move to the new Pac 12 next year. San Diego State is still close to the top of the conference and Dixon-Waters is the team's leading scorer at 12.9 points. The 6-foot-5 senior has scored in double digits in 12 straight games and topped out at 23 points on Feb. 3 in a win over Wyoming. Dixon-Waters had 10 points and four rebounds in the Jan. 6 win over Nevada. His 16 fantasy points in that game represent his floor with potential to score close to 30 points.
Devin Askew, G, Villanova ($5,000)
Villanova coach Kevin Willard has a plethora of backcourt options. While Bryce Lindsay starts and opened the season on fire, Askew has been more effective in conference play. The sixth-year guard had a run of three 20-point games in a five-game span in January. The 6-foot-5 senior has been slumping lately with just 4.7 points on 23.5 percent from the field in his last three games. He also only scored four points in the Jan. 7 loss to Creighton. These factors have driven his salary down to reasonable level, particularly for the upside Askew presents.
Sash Gavalyugov, G, Santa Clara ($4,700)
Gonzaga is currently looking up at Santa Clara in the WCC standings. Like Askew, Gavalyugov is a high-upside play. The 6-foot-3 freshman is coming off a 21-point performance in the team's ninth win in a row. The streak started on Jan. 10 when Gavalyugov exploded for 37 points in a win over Loyola Marymount. The Villanova transfer is averaging 8.6 points and 2.4 assists, but the pair of aforementioned performance show that he can light it up. In the loss to Gonzaga on Jan. 8, the guard was limited to eight points, but hit a pair of 3-pointers. A win against the Zags could be a feather in Santa Clara's potential big to steal a Big Dance bid.
Check out RotoWire's college basketball starting lineup data to view recent stats, usage trends and identify potential DFS value plays.
