UNLV seems defenseless in forgettable start to conference play

In whatever time it takes you to read this sentence, UNLV’s basketball team probably went under another screen against Sam Merrill and watched him hit a 3-pointer.

Or the Rebels got spread out defensively, became lazy and never sat down to guard people.

Or they didn’t get back and surrendered a run-out score.

Or they gave up another straight-line drive and offered no help for it.

Or you can just read this: Utah State 85, UNLV 78.

And this: The Rebels are now 1-2 in Mountain West play, are an overtime escape against one of the nation’s worst teams (San Jose State) from being 0-3 and have dropped both conference contests at the Thomas & Mack Center, where an announced crowd of 12,386 on Saturday night watched Utah State win its first road game of the season.

“This is not what we planned,” UNLV coach Marvin Menzies said after his team lost a game in which it was a 9½-point favorite. “We have to figure out how to right the ship, so to speak.

“It’s early in the conference journey. Still very optimistic. The silver lining is, the guys really fought back, which is good. But not good enough at the house. At the house, you have to win.”

It was the correct strategy for Menzies in his second season to offer what was an awful nonconference schedule a year after his team won 11 games and finished last in league.

He needed first to win fans back.

He needed first to just win.

But a slate that included eight of 13 opponents with losing records last season and playing the Nos. 325, 333 and 351 teams in the Kenpom ratings, also borne this reality: It didn’t prepare UNLV for conference at all.

This qualifies only as a cliche because it’s said so often each college season, but that doesn’t diminish its veracity: Conference play is different. Far more intense. You’re scouted better. You know them and they know you.

It’s not like some midweek game in December with the holidays in full swing and focus is difficult to muster.

There are no secrets in conference.

UNLV isn’t young. Stop thinking that. Stop saying that.

It’s disingenuous. It’s flat wrong.

The Rebels start two seniors, a junior-college transfer who arrived as a sophomore last season, a junior college Player of the Year and a five-star freshman recruit expected to be selected in the first round of the NBA draft.

There’s plenty of experience.

Now, the Rebels are new in that they rely heavily on faces (Brandon McCoy, Shakur Juiston, Jordan Johnson) that weren’t on the floor last season.

But we’re also 16 games into things — 16 with the same starting lineup — and whatever unfamiliarity that might have existed throughout that more-than-manageable nonleague schedule shouldn’t be an issue.

Defense certainly is. Awareness at that end. A lack of understanding about this time of year and how emotional things can get. The Rebels don’t get conference. They don’t get it at all so far.

You don’t go under screens against a Utah State guard like Merrill (20 points, 3-of-7 on 3s). Your bigs have to help on those drives. You can’t defend with what appeared to be heavy legs by the Rebels.

Utah State deserved every ounce of the win, but UNLV’s (lack of) defense helped the cause tremendously.

Nothing has changed in that UNLV would need to win the conference tournament in March to secure its first NCAA Tournament berth since 2013. The big picture in a second year under Menzies remains the same.

UNLV as program is an expected work in progress. It was one when the season began, continued to be one during a successful nonconference schedule and is one after a forgettable start to league.

But while 15 games remain before the tournament, plenty of time to improve in all phases, obvious weaknesses at both ends suggest the Rebels will be more concerned about playing for a decent seed and avoiding a play-in round than contending for any regular-session title.

At this point, I’m not so sure the margin between UNLV being unprepared for league or just not good enough to win in it is that vast.

“Conference is rough,” Menzies said. “But you have to protect the house.”

So far, the Rebels have treated intruders like family.

Contact columnist Ed Graney at egraney@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4618. He can be heard on “The Press Box,” ESPN Radio 100.9 FM and 1100 AM, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday. Follow @edgraney on Twitter.