It is the penultimate day of the regular season in college basketball. You should be paying close attention to our Bubble Watch because bids are being determined. There are plenty of smaller conference tournament underway, but we are more concerned with the bigger programs whose tournaments start next week.
While there are plenty of rivalries that are being played out, there is just one matchup of ranked teams in the early slate: Vanderbilt at Tennessee. State of Tennessee pride will be on the line, although neither team has been playing its best basketball of late. Tennessee has lost two of three with the win coming against lowly South Carolina. The Commodores have lost three of their last five games, including a four-point loss to the Volunteers on Feb. 21.
College Basketball DFS Picks for Saturday, March 7
Tennessee may be without stud freshman forward Nate Ament (ankle) for the second straight game. Check out RotoWire's College Basketball Injury Report to get the latest on Ament and other walking wounded players who are questionable coming into Sunday, such as Kansas State's PJ Haggerty and Louisville freshman guard Mikel Brown. The biggest injury news is that another freshman, Darius Acuff Jr. from Arkansas, will be out. The Razorbacks have been able to rely on his steady play all season and it will be interesting to see how they play without their best player. (More thoughts below.)
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
Tarris Reed, F, Connecticut ($9,700)
Reed saved his best basketball for Big East play and has been particularly hot of late. He has four double-doubles in his last six games. He has threatened to have a triple-double twice in that span with seven assists against Butler and six blocks in the demolition of St. John's. In 24 minutes against Marquette on Jan. 4, the 6-11 senior had 13 points, nine rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks. The only concern for Reed is fouls. He has accrued four or more fouls three times in his last five games.
Tre Donaldson, G, Miami ($8,200)
The Hurricanes have won seven of their last eight games to push into third place in the ACC. In that span, Donaldson has averaged 18.1 points, 4.9 rebounds and 5.4 assists. The 6-3 senior had five double-doubles with assists in the first half of the season. He nearly had a triple-double with 17 points, seven rebounds and nine assists in the Wednesday win at SMU. Miami has not played Louisville this season. Considering that the aforementioned Brown will be hobbled at best, Donaldson should have a solid game.
Massamba Diop, G, Arizona State ($7,500)
The Arizona State brass has left coach Bobby Hurley twist in the wind. The Duke legend has been on the Sun Devil sideline for 11 seasons, but has only made the NCAA tournament three times. He does not have a contract extention. The team has won its last two games in what might be Hurley's swan song. Diop has averaged 14.2 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.5 blocks in Big 12 play to give the team an interior presence. The 7-foot-1 freshman has just one double-double in conference play, but he has accrued nine boards three times. Iowa State has been sputtering with three losses in its last four games (albeit all against ranked teams), so Diop could take advantage.
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Middle Tier
Day Day Thomas, F, Cincinnati ($6,500)
The Bearcats have won six of their last seven games. It is no coincidence that Thomas has been scoring better over that stretch with 13.0 points, including 39.0 percent on 3-pointers. The 6-foot-1 senior showed off his potential by nailing seven 3-pointers on his way to a to a season-high 26 points in the win over Oklahoma State last Saturday. Thomas may even be able to use his size against TCU guard Brock Harding. It is a propitious match up for Day Day.
Malik Dia F, Mississippi ($6,500)
Success has largely eluded the Rebels this season. They have been playing more competitively with a pair of overtime losses sandwiched around a win over Auburn. Dia has scored in double digits in six straight games. Foul trouble has limited his output to a combined 21 points and five rebounds in his last two games, but he should be able to stay away from the whistle at home against the Gamecocks. Last year against South Carolina, Dia had 18 points in 21 minutes. The Rebel forward averaged 24.0 points over his a four-game span in February.
Boden Kapke, F, Boston College ($6,100)
If you scan all the way down the ACC standings, you might find BC and Notre Dame. It hasn't been a strong season for either program. The Eagles have won just one game in their last 11, but Kapke has been on the ascent. He is coming off a career-high 25 points in the Tuesday loss at Virginia Tech. Over his last eight games, the 6-11 junior has averaged 14.0 points and 6.4 rebounds. When the Eagles lost at Notre Dame on Jan. 24, Kapke had six points and nine boards. In his last home game, he had a double-double in the win over Wake Forest.
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
Solo Ball, G, Connecticut ($5,300)
Picking a second Husky is at least as much an indictment of Marquette as it is point to Connecticut. This has been a lost season for the Golden Eagles and may force coach Shaka Smart to at least consider the transfer portal. Ball has been plugging along as a starter for UConn, but he has scoring upside. He has scored at least 20 points four times in Big East play. In the Jan. 4 win over Marquette, Ball has 17 points and a season-high eight boards. Over his last six games, he has hit 36.0 percent of his 3-pointers, which is an improvement over his 30.8 percent on long-range shots on the season.
D.J. Wagner, G, Arkansas ($4,800)
There are certainly interesting options on a Razorback roster without Acuff. The Waiver Wire Report earlier this week pointed to Billy Richmond ($7,900) and I'd guess that Meleek Thomas ($7,000) inherits a good share of his fellow freshman's shots. They are both good options, but Wagner offers the best bang for the buck. He should move into the starting lineup for Acuff and had already been scoring better of late with a combined 27 points (6-of-8 on 3-pointers) in his last two games. The 6-foot-4 junior should handle the ball more and had a pair of seven-assist games early in the season.
Jalen Carey, F, Tennessee ($4,400)
When the Volunteers played in Nashville on Feb. 21, the Vanderbilt faithful booed Carey every time he touched the ball. The 6-foot-7 forward spent his first three seasons as a Commodore and the fans did not care for his transfer to rival Tennessee. He produced seven points and seven rebounds, which are above his road averages of 6.6 points and 5.5 rebounds. Through 19 home games, Carey has produced 8.1 points and 6.7 boards. He is a sneaky bet to close the regular season with his fourth double-double.
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