My selection is on Washington minus the points over Penn State at 10:30 pm et on Wednesday.

Penn State 'emptied the tank' in a 77-75 loss at home against USC on Sunday, connecting on a blistering 30-of-58 field goal attempts but still falling short for its second straight loss. The Nittany Lions head west to open a two-game road trip against Washington on Wednesday. Penn State owns the worse overall record in this matchup this season and has also faced the weaker schedule by most metrics. While the Nittany Lions were red hot offensively on Sunday that's been the exception rather than the rule. Note that they've been held to 25 or fewer made field goals in eight of their last 11 games. On the flip side, they've proven vulnerable defensively, allowing their last seven opponents to connect on 33, 36, 30, 38, 27, 40 and 29 field goals. Washington on the other hand, has been idle since Saturday's narrow loss at UCLA, marking its second straight defeat. The Huskies have been incredibly consistent offensively for much of the season. They've knocked down 26 or more field goals in six straight and 15 of their last 17 games. On the flip side, they've held their last five opponents to 15, 27, 22, 28 and 23 made field goals. While the Nittany Lions have done little to slow their opponents' pace, yielding 60+ field goal attempts in five of their last seven contests, the Huskies have limited three straight and five of their last six foes to 57 or fewer field goal attempts. Take Washington (8*).

Northwest Division Total of the Year. My selection is on the 'under' between Portland and Minnesota at 8:10 pm et on Thursday.

The Trail Blazers enter this game on the heels of five straight 'over' results. We have a 'catalyst for change' at work here, however, as all five of those games were played at home. While Portland really pushed the pace over that stretch, that hasn't been the case on the road recently, where they've gotten off 83 or fewer field goal attempts in four of their last five games. Lost in the Blazers recent offensive surge has been the fact that they've played some pretty good defense as well, holding three straight and 12 of their last 17 opponents to 43 or fewer made field goals. The Timberwolves went off for 55-of-92 shooting in a blowout win over Atlanta last time out. Keep in mind, prior to that they had been limited to 40 and 37 made field goals over their last two games. Atlanta got off a whopping 99 field goal attempts against Minnesota on Monday but that was a product of the lopsided nature of the contest. Prior to that, the T'Wolves had limited six of their last seven opponents to fewer than 90 field goal attempts. You can see the wheels turning for Minnesota defensively right now as it has held its last three opponents to 43, 39 and 40 made field goals. Take the under (10*).

Wednesday NBA Free play. My selection is on Golden State plus the points over San Antonio at 10:10 pm et on Wednesday.

We'll grab all the points we can get with the underdog Warriors on Wednesday. The Spurs were in a smash spot against a short-handed Lakers team in Los Angeles last night and predictably rolled by 28 points. While that wasn't an overly taxing affair, I do think they're in a letdown spot in their final game before the All-Star break on Wednesday as they look to extend their five-game SU and ATS winning streak. The Warriors will be missing some key contributors again on Wednesday - most notably Steph Curry. However, they're coming off a win over Memphis two nights ago and will look to head into the break on a positive note. I like the way they've tightened the screws defensively in recent games, holding four straight opponents to 42 or fewer made field goals. Producing shot volume has been an issue offensively but I think they can be dragged along by a Spurs team that has yielded 90 or more field goal attempts in nine of their last 12 games. It's going to be difficult for San Antonio to replicate its last two offensive performances as it connected on a ridiculous 107-of-191 field goal attempts over that stretch. Take Golden State.

Atlantic Sun Conference Game of the Year. My selection is on Queens-Charlotte minus the points over Austin Peay at 7 pm et on Wednesday.

Austin Peay enters this game red hot on the heels of six straight wins, going 4-2 ATS over that stretch. Of note, the Governors are entering uncharted territory as they've covered the spread in consecutive games. As well as they've played, they've yet to deliver three straight ATS victories this season. While they do own the better overall record in this matchup this season as well, Queens-Charlotte has faced the more difficult schedule. The Royals have put a recent three-game SU and ATS slide behind them, delivering back-to-back wins and covers. You'd be hard-pressed to find a team as locked-in offensively as the Royals have connected on 27 or more field goals in an incredible 11 of their last 12 games. They've knocked down 30+ field goals in two straight and 11 of their last 12 contests. Here, they'll face a Governors team that has been vulnerable defensively, allowing 25 or more made field goals in nine of their last 10 games. Queens-Charlotte wants to push the pace and Austin Peay has been matador-like in that regard, allowing four straight opponents to hoist up more than 60 field goal attempts. On the flip side, Queens-Charlotte has held seven straight opponents to 57 or fewer field goal attempts. Only three of the Royals last 11 opponents have connected on more than 26 field goals. Take Queens-Charlotte (10*).