Most of a 10-point lead had vanished over the previous five minutes and UNLV stared at a 66-65 lead with 8:40 left against Southern Utah. For this particular Rebels team, it was the perfect test.
Sports Columns
If you think about those No. 2 pencils used for grade-school exams, you get the idea how thin a margin for error UNLV’s basketball team has.
The struggles most expect from the inaugural season of the Marvin Menzies Era showed in several forms for the Rebels, who opened with a 76-68 loss to a South Alabama.
How much — and early — a UNLV fan base that can be as unrealistic as it is passionate buys into the newest version of the Rebels is anyone’s guess, but never underestimate how a team might respond to the perception of those who watch it.
We can confirm UNLV has a men’s basketball team this season, as the lights officially were turned on when first-year coach Marvin Menzies was forced to bring the Rebels out of hiding for the first of two exhibitions at the Thomas & Mack Center.
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