RADIO
The major conference tournaments are all going in earnest starting today. The ACC and Big 12 (16) are so big that they had to start yesterday. The SEC said, "Screw it ... we'll just play on Sunday." Whatever the case, we have our first day of wall-to-wall basketball as a warm-up for next week. We have 18 games across two slates from all major conference tournaments!
We've got some big names and some great matchups today. We'll go through all of those for each slate. We'll give you the core pieces to build a cash or GPP lineup. Then, we'll have some value plays to make it all fit. And for you Ricky Bobby types, we'll give you guys with a great ceiling with a low floor because, "If you ain't first, you're last."
Here are my picks across all CBB DFS slates on Wednesday, March 12, with the main slate starting at noon EDT on DraftKings. The late slate starts at 6 p.m. EDT. NOTE: Due to the quick turnaround in tournament play, the late slate isn't up on DraftKings yet as of the publishing time. Picks for that section will be filled in early this afternoon.
Today's Main Slate DraftKings CBB DFS Lineup Picks
Best Matchups:
Providence vs. Butler
Virginia guards vs. Georgia Tech
Arkansas guards vs. South Carolina
Northwestern forwards vs. Minnesota
Core Pieces:
Nick Martinelli, Northwestern ($9.8K)
Northwestern's Nick Martinelli has posted averages of 20+ points, 5+ rebounds and 37.5+ minutes per game this season.
Last high-major player to post those numbers: Kemba Walker at UConn (2010-11)
Last high-major forward: Hakim Warrick at Syracuse (2004-05) pic.twitter.com/L87oOQGnCL
— Jacob Pavilack (@JacobPavs) March 10, 2025
With both Jalen Leach and Brooks Barnhizer out for the last two months of the season, the Wildcats needed someone to step up. That someone was Martinelli. He was having a fine season with Northwestern at full strength, but he carried this team to the Big Ten (18) Tournament.
Northwestern has its chip and a chair. Can it make the run? Martinelli closed the season with at least 30 DraftKings points in four straight and eight of the last 10 games. One of those was in the first meeting against Minnesota when Martinelli went for 38.75 DK points in 34 minutes.
Baye Ndongo, Georgia Tech ($9.4K)
The Yellow Jackets beat both Clemson and Louisville this year, so they can play with anyone. Ndongo finished the season with at least 34 DraftKings points in eight straight games. He looks to have finally maximized his potential. This is a tough matchup against Virginia, but Ndongo held his own against the Pitt and Clemson fronts.
Day Day Thomas, Cincinnati ($6.9K)
Thomas mustered 18.5 DraftKings points in the first meeting with Iowa State on February 15. He didn't sink below 20 DK points again for the rest of the season. Thomas is a big reason that Cincinnati is playing another game. He put up 21 points and six steals against Oklahoma State yesterday. He should break 20 again today.
Value Pieces:
Andre Screen, Butler ($5.1K)
Screen has at least 15 DraftKings points in every game since December 14. He has topped 30 a handful of times since then and even hit 40 once. Screen posted 42 DraftKings points in 48 minutes in two games against the Friars this year. I'll take that for the price.
K.J. Windham, Northwestern ($5.1K)
Windham doesn't have the ceiling of Ty Berry, but he doesn't have his floor, either. Windham has at least 16 DraftKings points in all seven games as a starter for the Wildcats this year, including 26 against Minnesota on February 25.
Frank Mitchell, Minnesota ($4.9K)
Mitchell posted back-to-back double-doubles to close the regular season after posting just one in 26 games before that. He is peaking at the right time. Mitchell picked up 18.5 DK points in just 15 minutes in the first meeting with Northwestern.
Jonas Aidoo, Arkansas ($4.8K)
Aidoo was the only bright spot (29.5 DraftKings points in 26 minutes) in the first game against South Carolina. With Adou Thiero out, Aidoo and Trevon Brazile have been picking up the slack. Aidoo has played better but hasn't always stayed out of foul trouble.
Slate-Breaking Potential:
Markus Burton, Notre Dame ($10.1K)
The ACC’s leading scorer Markus Burton broke Notre Dame’s all time record for points scored in a game with 43 today. The sophomore is a a future high NBA prospect.
pic.twitter.com/fvrw6sIcre— The Cowboy Regg ✭ (@Irish_Cowboy88) March 9, 2025
The Irish needed Burton's scorching stretch to make the ACC Tournament. They got in and got a gift foul against Pitt to advance. The Irish have one chance at the postseason. This is it.
Burton, after four straight games of 36 or more DraftKings points, was held to just 25.75 against Pitt yesterday. North Carolina held him to 28 DK points in the only meeting this year despite 23 actual points. Burton only played 23 minutes in that game. He'll play close to all 40 in this one, so the ceiling is rather high.
Collin Murray-Boyles, South Carolina ($9.3K)
CMB had his best game of the season against Arkansas a little less than two weeks ago. He put up 35 points and seven rebounds en route to 53.75 DraftKings points. The bad news? He has a very low floor, as shown by his 11.25 DK points against Tennessee to close the regular season.
Javon Small, West Virginia ($8.9K)
Small's price was over five figures a few times earlier in the season, so this almost feels like a bargain. His floor is well below 20, but we saw Small put up 47 DraftKings points in the first meeting with Colorado, and he nuked Central Florida for 51.75 DK points on the last day of the regular season. The potential is there.
D.J. Wagner, Arkansas ($6.2K)
The only meeting between these two teams during the regular season was an epic disaster for everyone in an Arkansas uniform. The Hogs only scored 53 points on the Gamecocks and everyone's numbers suffered. That is Wagner's only game under 20 DraftKings points in the last month. He'll do better today, as will most of his teammates.
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Today's Late Slate DraftKings CBB DFS Lineup Picks
Best Matchups:
Kansas State wings vs. Baylor
Kansas vs. Central Florida
SMU guards vs. Syracuse
Ohio State vs. Iowa
Rutgers guards vs. USC
Stanford guards vs. California
Core Pieces:
Hunter Dickinson, Kansas ($10.4K)
Looking at some Hunter Dickinson stats on Torvik this morning:
First, #kubball is 11-0 when Dickinson scores 22+.
This graph also shows how this year, when Dickinson has played below his average offensive rating, KU has lost much more games than it has won. pic.twitter.com/htAIIlR8xQ
— Sam Winton (@sam_winton2) March 10, 2025
That graph tells me what we already know: like it or not, Hunter Dickinson is vital to this team's success. Dickinson has at least 30 DraftKings points in every game since that ugly loss in Hilton Coliseum back on January 15. He has topped 50 three times since then. Two of those times were in the last five games of the season.
Dickinson is playing his best at the time that Kansas really needs him. He put up 84.5 DraftKings points in just 57 minutes against Central Florida this year. As far as matchups go, this is the best he'll find for the rest of the season.
Maxime Raynaud, Stanford ($9.6K)
Raynaud should likely be priced higher than Dickinson. He only has one game under 40 DraftKings points in the last five. Raynaud's ceiling is a bit lower and the matchup is a bit tougher, but he's a sure 40. Dickinson is still a bit of a risk to hit that mark.
Silas Demary Jr., Georgia ($8.2K)
The Bulldogs haven't been the most consistent team this year, but they are finally getting consistent play from someone on the team. Demary has at least 25 DraftKings points in every game since a February 1 blowout loss to Alabama. He has topped 30 in four of the last five games. Demary is playing well at the right time.
Jayden Epps, Georgetown ($6.5K)
Epps has turned out to be a good compliment to Micah Peavy. He has at least 20 DraftKings points in each of the last seven games, closing the season with 28.25 against DePaul. Expect another solid game from Epps. He hasn't topped 30 DK points since December, but you know he'll be in the 20s.
Value Pieces:
Brycen Goodine, Oklahoma ($5.1K)
You never really know what you're going to get from Goodine. He has come up big when Oklahoma needed him but also disappeared for games at a time. The first game against Georgia was one of those.
Goodine has scored in double figures in DraftKings points in every game since February 15 and has been over 17 DK points in each of the last five games. That's the most consistency we've seen out of him this season.
JJ Traynor, DePaul ($5.1K)
Traynor closed the regular season with back-to-back games in double figures. He only scored in double figures once all season before March. He's getting hot at the right time. Traynor put up 29 DraftKings points against Georgetown on Saturday. If he can come anywhere close to that again, he's more than worth the price.
Kobe Elvis, Oklahoma ($4.6K)
The Dayton transfer was slow to acclimate to the SEC this year. He closed the season strong, averaging 17.2 DraftKings points over the last five games. He averaged just under 10 in SEC play. One of his bright spots in conference play came in the game against Georgia (23.75 DK points).
Sean Stewart, Ohio State ($4.3K)
Stewart has been a consistent bench piece for the Buckeyes this year. He put up 23.5 DraftKings points in just 14 minutes in the first game against Iowa. If he plays near his current minutes load (he has averaged 20.5 minutes per game over the last month), we could see a big total for the price.
Slate-Breaking Potential:
Micah Peavy, Georgetown ($10.8K)
Gameday. Hoya. Micah Peavy the last time he played in the Garden: pic.twitter.com/rHFsNWobHl
— John Kurkjian (@JohnKurkjian_) March 12, 2025
Georgetown closed the regular season against DePaul on Saturday with a six-point loss. Peavy played every minute and still piled up 48.5 DraftKings points. Peavy has played all but two minutes total in the last seven games combined. His ceiling is astronomical, but a mid 20s floor is a bit low for this price range.
Eric Dixon, Villanova ($10K)
Dixon leads the nation with 23.6 points per game this season, but he doesn't have much help around him. Nova needs a deep Big East Tournament run to get into the NCAA Tournament after a loss to Georgetown last week.
The run starts here. Both Nova games against Seton Hall this year were rock fights, but that's where Dixon is at his best. He put up 50 DraftKings points in the last meeting on February 26.
Keyshawn Hall, Central Florida ($8.3K)
Hall has slowed down a bit, but he had two big games against Kansas this year. He scored 30 DraftKings points on the Jayhawks in a game where his team scored just 48 points. Playing in Lawrence, Hall went for 50.25 DK points in a four-point loss. His price point is great for a GPP flyer tonight.
Moustapha Thiam, Central Florida ($7.3K)
The freshman wasn't much of a factor in the first game against Kansas, but he put up 27.25 DraftKings points in the narrow loss at the Phog. Since then, Thiam has at least 23 DK points in every game. There is a lot of potential here since Hunter Dickinson is notorious for not being a great defender.
