Georgia Tech's Javaris Crittenton (1) watches UNLV's Kevin Kruger hug teammate Michael Umeh, left, after the Rebels defeated the Yellow Jackets 67-63 in their NCAA Tournament first-round game. Photo by The Associated Press

CHICAGO

Kevin Kruger says if it means he walks away from this NCAA Tournament with a ring, he will gladly launch 64 shots (essentially one for every participating team, minus the play-in loser) and miss them all. He didn't miss that many Friday. It just seemed that way.

"I would take every one of them again," he said. "I thought every one was good."

UNLV basketball is again among the first-round NCAA winners, and given it took 16 years to do so, the unconventional style in which it beat Georgia Tech should come as no surprise.

The Rebels advanced with a 67-63 victory on a day their most important player didn't make a shot in eight attempts, all from 3-point range. Some hit the back iron. Some went in and out. None fell through. Kruger even missed two free throws in a game, which he has now done just six times all season.

It's March. Weird things happen.

Kruger used to hang around at the United Center when his father brought Illinois here for several games. He used to shoot jumpers as a teenager from all spots. Made a lot of them, too. Really. He swears so.

Someone actually suggested afterward that the United Center is an arena in which visiting players often find it difficult to make shots and wondered if the immense surroundings played a part in UNLV's 19-for-60 effort from the field. Kruger said he wouldn't mind using it as an excuse but was joking. How else to respond to such an idiotic question?

Truth is, Kruger just was never in sync. He never found any sort of rhythm, which is strange given the player and moment.

You figured the matchup guaranteed some obvious subplots: The Yellow Jackets would have the athleticism of your average NBA team, UNLV forward Joe Darger would shoot less than five seconds after his first touch and Kruger's savvy and experience would prove a valuable difference.

The first one happened -- "They're stupid athletically," Kruger praised. The second one did as Darger let one fly at unofficially 3.56 seconds and had one of the more interesting stat lines of three shots, three misses and two fouls in three minutes. Never say Darger doesn't get the most out of an opportunity.

The part about being savvy and experienced never fully came about for Kruger, though, who managed only five points, more than eight below his average.

The toughest challenge he faced was trying to contribute offensively while not shooting UNLV out of such a significant win. It's a delicate line to toe and often impossible for players younger than him. But he didn't overly hunt or force shots. You can't dress up 0-for-8, but what he couldn't do himself, others did off his game-high eight assists.

"Obviously, (Kruger's shooting woes) made the game a little more difficult for us," Rebels coach Lon Kruger said. "He had good looks that were right there. But he'll shoot those same shots Sunday."

The bright side for UNLV: Entering the tournament, Kruger hadn't had consecutive poor shooting games since early February. But the second round would be a terrible time for the Rebels should he fall into such a slump.

It looked for a while as if UNLV's side of the Midwest Regional bracket would blow open like a barn door in an April windstorm. But reality prevailed, and No. 2 seed Wisconsin eventually caught and pulled away from Texas A&M Corpus-Christi.

It's an entirely different matchup for UNLV after playing Georgia Tech. It's like having to keep pace with a team of thoroughbreds one day and trying to wrestle a team of bulls 48 hours later. Wisconsin is big on big, and the odds of UNLV again shooting less than 32 percent and living for next week is like that of the Badgers not having a larger contingent of fans here.

"I'm not going to turn down open shots," Kevin Kruger said. "Maybe had I knocked down my first two today, I would have shot more. But when you see out of the corner of your eye Joe Darger or Mike (Umeh) with a better shot, I'm going to pass it. If I'm 10-for-10, I'll still pass it. Well, at least I'd like to think I would pass it."

A few things: If Kruger shoots 10-for-10 Sunday, the Rebels win. If he ever has been 10-for-10 in his life and passed to anyone, it's because Darger hadn't shot in more than five seconds and was growing antsy.

Ed Graney's column is published Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. He can be reached at 383-4618 or egraney@reviewjournal.com.