3 takeaways from the UNLV-Prairie View A&M game
Three takeaways from the UNLV basketball team’s 98-63 victory over Prairie View A&M on Wednesday night at the Thomas & Mack Center:
1. Anthony Smith steps up
One of the question marks coming into the season was what players would step up to fill roles beyond the big-name stars. Anthony Smith appears to be providing an answer early in the season.
The junior college transfer from Sacramento, California, who was almost an afterthought in the recruiting process to guys like Brandon McCoy and Shakur Juiston, was sensational Wednesday night.
Smith scored nine straight points for UNLV as the Rebels started to pull away in the first half and was making plays all over the floor.
He finished with 17 points and seven rebounds in just 21 minutes of action off the bench. Smith, who made 8 of 10 from the field, also had two steals and sacrificed his body on several occasions going after loose balls.
“I grew up playing football so I was always tough,” he said. “I love leaving my heart on the floor and just playing hard.
“We might have a fast start or a slow start, but having a high-energy player like myself coming off the bench is very good for a team. I just try to leave it all out there so we can get a ‘W.’”
Smith, who didn’t play high school basketball at the varsity level, is still learning the game.
UNLV coach Marvin Menzies loves his effort and hopes he can find more consistency.
“(That was a) small sample size of the athleticism and energy he plays with,” Menzies said. “He’s a little undisciplined at times. Sometimes he’ll have an exciting dunk and then goes and fouls 30 feet from the basket. Everybody remembers the dunk, but it’s like, ‘Yeah, OK bro.’ He’s a good player. We just have to keep him where he is right now which is engaged in his own development and locked in. Hopefully we can keep that going.”
2. Menzies sings the praises of Kris Clyburn
For the second straight game, Clyburn was the only starter not to reach double figures in scoring for UNLV.
Menzies said the contributions of his junior guard can’t be found in the box score.
“He’s like an offensive lineman on a Super Bowl team,” Menzies said. “He might walk into the bar and nobody’s going to celebrate him walking in, but he’s got a championship ring. That’s what he brings to the table. He’s a great human being and I’m happy to have him.”
Clyburn went scoreless in the opener and had seven points and four rebounds in 18 minutes of action Wednesday night.
He did play solid defense on Prairie View’s leading scorer Zachary Hamilton, who finished with 15 points.
“When Kris wasn’t on him, he was torching us,” Menzies said. “He’s playing really well defensively.
“There’s so many things you can do to help your team win besides scoring points. That’s the sexy part. That’s the glitz and glamour and the highlights on the news, but you have to win games doing some other stuff.”
3. Not-so-free throws
It wasn’t all positive for UNLV.
The Rebels committed 18 turnovers and made just 19 of 38 from the free-throw line.
That should give Menzies plenty to work on during Thursday’s practice in preparation for a much tougher matchup with Eastern Washington on Friday night.
“Free throws were the glaring thing,” Menzies said. “(We missed) 19 free throws. That’s not good. But I feel pretty confident we can shoot it pretty well, we just didn’t tonight. We’re pretty good in practice. We’re going to get an extra free-throw shooting session in at practice tomorrow.”
Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-277-8028. Follow @adamhilllvrj on Twitter.
