5 players to watch in UNLV basketball games this week

Five players to watch when UNLV plays Big West Conference schools UC Riverside on Wednesday and Cal State Fullerton on Saturday. Both basketball games are at 7 p.m. at the Thomas & Mack Center.

1. Tre’ Coggins, senior guard, Cal State Fullerton: After sitting out the season opener against Caltech because of an unspecified injury, Coggins returned on Sunday to score 31 points in a 106-100 double-overtime victory over Portland State. He scored 28 of those points in the second half and overtimes. Coggins averaged 15.6 points last season.

2. Malik Thames, senior guard, UC Riverside: He is the Highlanders’ point guard, but Thames is an aggressive scorer. He leads Riverside in scoring through its first two games, averaging 14.5 points while making 6 of 14 3-pointers. Thames also has totaled 10 rebounds and six assists.

3. Secean Johnson, senior forward, UC Riverside: Johnson is the Highlanders top returning scorer, averaging 12.1 points last season Johnson is at 12.0 so far this season, and is tied for the team lead in rebounds with a 7.0 average despite being 6 feet 5 inches.

4. Kyle Allman, sophomore guard, Cal State Fullerton: He is known for playing strong defense, but Allman also has averaged 19.0 points during the early part of this season.

5. Chance Murray, junior guard, UC Riverside: A transfer from Arizona State, Murray is a key addition. He averaged 10.5 points through two games, and is known as a quality defender.

Contact Mark Anderson at manderson@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2914. Follow @markanderson65 on Twitter.