Minnesota at Portland

Minnesota just dropped 103 points on Dallas in a game that flew well past the total, and that offense – the best shooting team in the league at 48 percent from the field – travels well. The Lynx are 9-2 on the road this season. Natasha Howard is averaging 17.2 points and 8 rebounds a game, and this group scores in bunches from the opening tip, not just once it gets rolling. Portland isn't nearly that explosive, but the Fire can put points on the board too, 84.3 a night with a respectable shooting profile of their own, and Carla Leite pushes tempo as well as anybody on this roster. Put a team that scores in bunches and gives points up in bunches on the road against a team that can play at that same pace, and the result is a fast, station-to-station game from the jump, exactly the shape that pushes both the first-half number and the full-game total over while keeping a home underdog live against a number this size. Minnesota is the better team and should win this one, but a track meet doesn't let a big favorite pull away the way a grind-it-out game would, and it doesn't wait until the third quarter to show up either. Portland's own offense is live enough to keep pace possession for possession even in a loss. Minnesota's offense pushes this game over the total from both ends of the floor, and that same up-and-down pace is exactly what keeps the Fire inside the number. Three picks here: Take the first-half OVER, the full-game OVER, and take Portland with the points tonight.