New Foes: A Preview of The New MWC Competition

Update - Midweek (likely Wednesday) an outstanding article will be posted by our very own Jason Taylor regarding player performance at the Desert Reign tournament and evaluations of returning players, as well as all the new guys who played. It's comprehensive, may release it in two parts (one this Wednesday eve, the next late Saturday). Come back then or follow on Twitter to find out when its published!

Football - love it, or count it as a sideshow to the glory of the Runnin' Rebels Basketball, it has changed the landscape of the MWC. Over the past few years solid and formidable opponents have left the Mountain West Conference. Remember the Utah Utes and BYU Cougars? Now we have -0- opponents from our neighbor state to the east. Reason - football money. The MWC brought in a few short lived competitors - The TCU Horned Frogs and Boise State Broncos, gone (TCU already gone, BSU gone next season). Then there's another usual suspect who has decided to leave - the SDSU Aztecs (next season).

Additions anyone? While other "stronger" conferences have decimated our league, there were some additions. In fact, we are only losing one this season, and gaining two - a net gain of one team (for now). The additions are Fresno State and Nevada. Let's learn a little about these new additions.


Fresno State - "The Bulldogs"

Fresno State should be familiar to many because they occasionally show up in the NCAA tournament, were kind of a cinderella back in the early 2000's, but most importantly - was the landing spot of Jerry Tarkanian after he was muscled out of UNLV (1995-2002).

Location: Fresno, CA (in a tie with Bakersfield for the armpit of California)
Venue: Save Mart Center
Capacity: 14,544
Former conference: West Coast Conference (WCC)
Head Coach: Rodney Terry
Historical series with Fresno State - UNLV leads 27-6

(Season)       (W-L)
2011-12 - 13-20
2010-11 - 14-18
2009-10 - 15-18

While known for basketball, they have seriously under-performed for quite some time. The Bulldogs seem to be excited about their recent recruiting class, and their coach is entering his second year with the team (sound familar?) Expectations for Fresno State will be minimal, they may do slightly better than bottom of the MWC, but not by much unless they line-up a cupcake non-conference schedule. More often than not - they have been the cupcake.

They return 3 of 5 starters and are quite excited about Fresno native Robert Upshaw, a 7 footer ranked #55 in the ESPN top 100 recruits (2012). They also feature Las Vegas native (Cimarron-Memorial graduate) Kevin Olekaibe, who starts for the Bulldogs. Incidently, the guy can score - he notched 43 points last sesaon vs. Seattle University in a home game. The other returning starters are Kevin Foster and Tyler Johnson.

It's hard to point to anything that the Bulldogs really do well - all of their offensive stats are ranked in the 200's among the 300 or so D-1 teams:

PPG - 65.8 / Asst PG / 11.3 Reb PG / 31.6  / FG Pct 40.9%

Defense statistics:
66.1 PPG allowed / 12.2 Asst PG allowed / 35.7 Reb PG allowed / 44.8% FG Pct allowed

So, with these kind of statistics, my knee jerk reaction is - it will feel like TCU never left, they were just replaced by Fresno State. Unless this 7 footer is named Shaquille O'Neil, we should be able to beat them both times we meet.


UNR "Nevada" - The Wolfpack

We know Nevada. We've known them for a very long time - they are our in-state rivals. Every year, we play a football game against them, and what's at stake is possession of the Fremont cannon. We have faced them in basketball every year for as long as I can remember. The bonus is now we'll face them twice a year, maybe three times if we end up playing them in the MWC tournament. Welcome to the reckoning, "Nevada"

(season)     (W-L)
2011-12 - 28-7
2010-11 - 13-19
2009-10 - 21-13


Location: Reno, NV (armpit of the United States)
Venue: Lawlor Events Center
Capacity: 11,536
Former conference: Western Athletic Conference (WAC)
Head Coach: David Carter
Historical series with UNR: UNLV leads 54-19

Despite UNLV easily beating UNR last year, they went onto a very respectable record: 28-7. That said, because of their weak conference and lack of quality wins including obviously not winning their conference tournament (lost to Louisiana Tech in the final) they ended up in the NIT and were beaten by Stanford in the quarterfinal. The Wolfpack is returning three starters: Deonte Burton, Malik Story and Jerry Evans Jr. but lost (to graduation) Olek Czyz and Dario Hunt. This is the type of team which will actually get to prove whether they can substantiate their record because they actually have to play difficult matchups. Kind of like if you made Utah State play in our conference. Likely outcome - they will not repete last season's success (duh). They would probably not repeat last seasons record even if still playing in the WAC due to the losses of Czyz and Hunt.


Here are their 2011-12 averages:
Offense:
PPG: 70.3 / Asst PG 12.9 / Reb PG 37.1 / FG Pct PG 45%

Defense:
PPG allowed 65.1 / Ass PG allowed 13.8 / Reb PG allowed /33.1 . FG Pct PG allowed 41.3%

The Wolfpack's most impressive statistic was rebounding (45th in the nation), but the team high rebounds statistic seesawed between Czyz and Hunt 90% of the time -- so they're taking a hit there. Unless they unleash some secret weapon, we should be able to beat them both times we meet.

Conclusion

Geographically speaking, we've added some semi-close but crappy locations to play basketball at. But, we've finally rounded up our in-state rival. Only time will tell if either school can provide real competition to the Runnin' Rebels, or at least help our RPI. Welcome to the big leagues Bulldogs and Wolfpack.

Recap - UNR vs. UNLV

Undefeated, 2-0

What a fun game to watch! Three potential headlines could describe this one:

Sloppy beginning – dictating tempo, playing UNLV’s game, not UNR's

The game started out rough for both teams. Lots of errant passes, teams trying to do too much, and push tempo a little too fast. It was a relatively low scoring affair at first, and the turning point came with 12 minutes left in the first half and the score tied 12-12. From that point on things were more controlled and more consistent, and UNLV went on a few runs. UNR seemed to play at UNLV's speed rather than trying to stretch the clock and slow down tempo. Regardless, their shooting was embarrassing and who knows if slowing it down would have helped any. Even though it seemed fast paced, I would say I saw the Rebels run too many breaks, or shoot the ball especially quickly within the clock. Maybe it's the illusion of Runnin' that is occurring right now, and we'll get actual running later?

Comfort zone: consistency for UNLV, fluctuating lead

Once UNLV took the lead, they maintained it throughout most of the game. This was exactly the type of basketball fans wanted to see UNLV play. Before the season started, we asked who would be the coaches getting off the bench and making some noise – you saw both Heath Schroyer and Justin Hutson both up and rallying the troops to victory. The lead fluctuated between 5 points early on, to our biggest lead of 18 points (61-43) with 6:36 left in the half that came on a fast break dunk by Justin Hawkins. You could tell from this game that the Rebels strength and conditioning was superior to most of the Wolfpack except for Deonte Burton, who had to hoist his team on his back to make things competitive. Chances are with an 18 point lead with 6 minutes left, some fans tuned out or left the arena – shame shame shame, there was more game to be seen.

The one that almost got away, close finish

People will say, UNLV lacks that killer instinct. With such a big lead they let it slip away and almost lost the game. It’s a valid point, but lets look on the bright side – it kind of made the game entertaining and put UNLV in another pressure situation that they can learn from when times get tougher. Close games are more entertaining than blowouts, and this game was transformed into a close one when the rest of the Wolfpack joined Mr. Burton ‘s crusade.

Observations:

There are so many guys the Rebels can have step up and have a big game on any given night. Among the group of stars, I’d list Moser, Bellfield, Marshall, Lopez, Thomas, and Hawkins – that’s a much bigger group to chose from than last season.

Rebels still shooting the three frequently and poorly, 26.9% for the game. They need to stop doing that so much or make them more frequently, long shots create long rebounds and fast break opportunities for the opposing team.

Rebel passing is sloppy, too many cross-court passes that could have been picked off. If you want to see how this team is different than last years, look at passing. Last years team would swing the ball around the perimeter, and Coach Kruger would cringe at the cross-court passing.

Hustle is in effect, saw many players sacrifice their bodies to steal or try and recover the loose ball.

Player notes

Rebel Reign MVP – Carlos Lopez

For a guy who missed a game with a severe ankle sprain, he performed a miracle and was the heart and soul of the team tonight. Sure, he was only the 4^th leading scorer but the guy was awesome to watch and played as if he was never injured at all. Lopez is really picking up where he left off and enjoying the freedom that comes with being a power forward rather than a center. His trick moves and fancy footwork make him a cross between Anderson Varajo and Tim Duncan. Can't wait to see more from Lopez.

Chace Stanback

Welcome back Chace. His point production was critical and it was interesting to see that he was letting the game come to him, with no jitters or indication that he had missed any games. Chase is a pro, and hopefully he can help out in a balanced role that makes opposing teams guard all of our talented tall players causing matchup difficulties all season.

Mike Moser

We knew he was a offensive machine, but who knew he was a double double every night kind of guy? He’s becoming so good that it will really hurt if he gets injured. Although it wasn’t another 20 rebound night, he’s feeling comfortable in the offense and is a shoot first, pass second type of player. Fact is, someone has to be that guy. Looking forward to more Mike.

Brice Massamba

Although he fouled out, some of the best Massamba I’ve witnessed happened tonight. He was dominant, showed a lot of heart, and did things that wont show up in the stat line. With the blistering pace this game was played at, Brice should be happy with that decision to shed the weight last season. Good job Brice!

Quintrell Thomas

Didn’t have a stellar offensive game, but became heavily relied on to deal with people like Olek Czyz when Brice went out due to foul trouble. Q is in a category of players who didn’t have horrible nights – but not everyone can shine at once. Still a good rebounding effort and a really nice block by Thomas.

Kendall Wallace

Wallace still hasn’t found his in-game rhythm when it comes to his specialty – the three point shot. What I would hate for him to become is another Derrick Jasper, a senior who is on the court because they are a senior but can’t shoot and can’t guard anyone due to injuries. I still have high hopes for him, but for his own sake I feel that if he doesn’t develop a dependable three point shot by the break he’ll be buried behind Reggie Smith as a fourth option guard. Even if Wallace’s shot comes along, Coach Rice may want to play some zone to compensate for his lack of defense.

Anthony Marshall

Had an off game, no field goals at all. But, that’s how great this year’s team is – he doesn’t have to. Marshall quietly did some damage from the free throw line and helped his team by dishing out 7 assists with only 2 turnovers. Marshall will bounce back.

Oscar Bellfield

He’s really enjoying the new role, and was rock solid tonight. At several points in the game it seemed as though you could count on him or Moser creating their own shot at critical points to further momentum. He did a nice job.

Justin Hawkins

Coming off a career night, Hawkins still had some magic in his shoes and made the most of it. He shot 50% from the field and led all Rebels with 13. Hawkins is a really different player than the guy we’ve seen the past two seasons, its as if he were one of these new transfers we’ve been hearing so much about. Whatever he did in the off season (or what Coach Rice did for him), its working. I get the Hawkins part of the equation. If he keeps pulling of these genius performances I’m changing his first name to Steven like Hawking J

Great game for the Rebels. Good two point shooting, bad three point shooting, good rebounding, and great assists. We may have caught UNR on a bad night, we may have escaped a possible disaster, but all that matters are Ws’ and L’s and so far we are undefeated and UNR is winless – the way it should be.

GO REBELS!

Up Next: UNLV vs. UNR

By Jason Taylor

Stanback and Marshall will return for Monday's game against Reno at the T &M, 7:00 pm.  It will be televised on CBS Sports Network, which is channel 333 on Cox in Las Vegas.

Here's the recruiting report on UNR using ESPN data.  The "Top 100" category shows how players placed on ESPN's Top 100 for that player's graduating high school class.  Placement in the Top 100 is derived from their "Scouting Grade", which measured player talent, according to ESPN criteria.  The top scouting grade possible is 100.  The "AVG" is an average scouting grade of the top 8 grades on the team. 

There are some inadequacies in this system of measurement, but it places emphasis on the "better" players according to their recruiting assessments, who are more likely to receive playing time.  You can copy and paste this info on a blank sheet, take it to the game, and you'll have a good indication of who their good players should be.

I'll include UNLV as well, for comparison.  I did not have time to update the Rebel's complete info, but it includes the pertinent recruiting information.

UNR has 1 "Top 100" recruit, Olek Czyz, and he placed 87^th in his class.  ESPN gave very high regard to Deonte Burton as well, as he narrowly missed the list for his graduating class with a Scouting Grade of 92.  UNLV has 4 that made the Top 100.

	UNR
NO	NAME	HT/WT	PO	CLASS	TOP 100	SCOUT GR	AVG
24	DEONTE BURTON	6-1/185	G	SO		92
31	OLEK CZYZ	6-7/240	F	SR	87	92
4	DEVONTE ELLIOT	6-10/220	F	SO		88
2	JERRY EVANS JR	6-8/188	G	SO		87
20	JORDAN BURRIS	6-7/205	G	SO		87
11	BRIC CROOK	6-4/205	G	SO		83
1	PATRICK NYEKO	6-6/180	G	JR		82
15	JORDAN FINN	6-4/190	G	SO		79	86.25
33	KEVIN PANZER	6-9/205	F	SO		78
34	MALIK STORY	6-5/225	G	JR		78
44	DARIO HUNT	6-8/230	F	SR		75
12	KIETH FUETSCH	6-0/170	G	JR		NR
45	RICHARD BELL	6-9/215	F	FR		NR
	13 PLAYERS

                

UNLV		TOP 100	SCOUT GR	AVG
CHACE STANBACK	Sr	52	96
QUINTRELL THOMAS	Jr	56	95
MIKE MOSER	So	55	92
ANTHONY MARSHALL	Jr	85	91
REGGIE SMITH	So	-	90
CARLOS LOPEZ	So	-	89
KENDALL WALLACE	Sr	-	81
JUSTIN HAWKINS	Jr	-	80	89.3
OSCAR BELLFIELD	Sr	-	66
KARAM MASHOUR	So	-	NR
BRICE MASSAMBA	Sr	-	NR

NR = Not Rated.  ESPN did not assess the player in High School.

UNR lost its opener to Missouri State, 68-46.

Other Notes:

UNLV scrimmaged Loyola Maramount and we won.  Loyola Maramount then played #17 UCLA "away" for a season opener, and WON, 69-58.

#24 California, who will visit the T &M Dec. 23^rd, blew George Washington away, 81-54.  They moved to 2-0, and looked good all around. 

UNC won its second game.  The commentator said the Tar Heels have 5 players expected to go in the 1^st round of the NBA draft!