Position breakdown: Friday night’s UNLV-South Alabama game

Breaking down UNLV’s basketball season opener against South Alabama at 7 p.m. Friday at the Thomas & Mack Center:

BACKCOURT

South Alabama returns Ken Williams, who averaged 15.5 points last season. The Jaguars also picked up junior college point guard Dederick Lee, who began his college career at Oral Roberts. Jalen Poyser will run point for UNLV, and fellow guards Uche Ofoegbu (6 feet 4 inches) and Kris Clyburn (6-6) will be matchup problems for the Jaguars.

Edge: UNLV

FRONTCOURT

The Rebels don’t have the size to match up with a lot of frontcourts, but South Alabama isn’t one of them. That said, rebounding issues are a real concern for the Rebels, so the emphasis will be on Christian Jones and Troy Baxter Jr. to aggressively protect the rim. They have the ability to do just that. South Alabama’s Nick Stover averaged 10.1 points, and he and Don MuepoKelly combined to average 7.4 rebounds.

Edge: South Alabama

BENCH

UNLV probably will use an eight-player rotation, a number that should grow to 10 once forward Dwayne Morgan (hip) Cheickna Dembele (right heel) are healthy. Baxter and guard Jovan Mooring are good enough to break into the starting lineup at points this season. The Jaguars feel good about their depth, but it’s unproven. So both teams have that in common.

Edge: UNLV

INTANGIBLES

The Jaguars have nothing to lose because the pressure will be on the favored Rebels to win. But South Alabama is a veteran team, and the Rebels are still trying to learn to play together. That experience could be especially important early when nervousness tends to be at its highest.

Edge: South Alabama

BETTING LINE:

UNLV -6

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