The NBA heads into its All-Star break, while West Virginia meets Pittsburgh, and the Penguins get a visit from the Rangers.

Tipping off on the hardwood . . .

There are no NBA games on the schedule for Friday as the league begins its All-Star break. The night instead features a pair of events: the All-Star Celebrity Game, and the Rookie Challenge. Saturday will then have the H.O.R.S.E. competition and the Skills Challenge, with the game itself all set for Sunday night.

That means the highlight hoops action on the Friday schedule is the only college basketball game of the night involving ranked teams: No. 5 West Virginia at No. 25 Pittsburgh. The Mountaineers (19-4 SU, 9-13 ATS) will be looking to bounce back from an 82-75 loss to Villanova in their last game. Darryl Bryant scored 15 points for West Virginia in that home contest, while Kevin Jones had 11 points and eight rebounds. The Panthers (18-6 SU, 11-8-2 ATS) cruised to a 77-53 win over Robert Morris last time out, with Ashton Gibbs scoring 20 points on the night.

Taking a trip around the rink . . .

As well, there are seven games on the NHL's schedule for Friday, with Montreal at Philadelphia, Nashville at New Jersey, Vancouver at Columbus, Toronto at St. Louis, Atlanta at Minnesota, Phoenix at Colorado, and the Rangers at Pittsburgh. The rival Rangers and Penguins last met on January 25, with Pittsburgh picking up a 4-2 road victory. Minor-league callup Chris Conner had two goals for the Pens in that win, Evgeni Malkin and Pascal Dupuis had one goal apiece, and Marc-Andre Fleury made 28 saves. Artem Anisimov scored twice for the Rangers.

Bet on the NBA and NCAAB online at BetUS Sports