3 takeaways from UNLV’s 79-63 loss at Utah State
LOGAN, Utah — Three takeaways from the UNLV basketball team’s 79-63 loss at Utah State on Saturday at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum.
DEVELOPING VERSATILITY
The Rebels are young in countless spots, and that means players who, while skilled in one or two areas, don’t yet offer the all-around games needed to produce big efforts at this level.
“The challenge now is what it was in the beginning, the development,” UNLV coach Marvin Menzies said. “You have to make sure all the guys are getting better, even your seniors. The fiber and culture of what we’re building is that we are still teaching and educating on little things they just haven’t been taught before.
“We have guys who are one-trick ponies right now, and we need to get them to do other things.”
Two such players — freshmen Troy Baxter Jr. and Zion Morgan — showed flashes of such good and bad tendencies Saturday.
Baxter finished with eight points and three rebounds in 16 minutes and had a one-handed dunk while cutting to the rim in the second half that would make any highlight tape, but his shot selection in the halfcourt is often poor at best.
The first time he touched the ball, Baxter missed badly on a rushed 3-pointer. A few trips later, he went one-on-one from about 20 feet instead of making an extra pass and bricked another attempt.
Morgan brought the sort of energy desperately needed after his team’s lackluster 18-point home loss to Boise State on Wednesday, compiling four points, two assists, two steals and two turnovers in 19 minutes. He was a defensive pest within UNLV’s zone, but to say his offense needs work (1-of-4 shooting Saturday) is to say it was chilly outside.
MORE ISSUES ON THE BOARDS
It’s one thing to get outrebounded by Duke or Kansas or even Boise State.
It’s another to do so against Utah State.
The Aggies rank last in rebounding margin among 11 Mountain West teams, but collected 41 boards to 32 for the Rebels.
Cheickna Dembele led UNLV with six rebounds, but starting forwards Tyrell Green and Christian Jones combined for just nine in 43 minutes.
Kris Clyburn, a guard who leads the Rebels in rebound average at 6.6, had three.
“To get outrebounded by nine is unacceptable,” Menzies said. “That’s a technique and toughness and mentality thing. That’s where we weren’t able to check that box fully. Rebounding is a mentality, and we didn’t do that in this game.”
Utah State had 12 second-chance points to nine for UNLV, making the most of the eight offensive rebounds the Aggies grabbed.
But this is a team that is just plus-0.3 in rebound margin, and its two best rebounders are guards.
UNLV is plus-1.6 in margin, ranking eighth in the conference.
Which means while not much better than Utah State, the Rebels still should have held their own on the boards.
A CONTINUED NEED FOR TALK
It is said the single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place, which explains why the Rebels sometimes act as if opposing shooters are invisible.
“The last eight or nine minutes, we had too many miscommunications and they made us pay for it,” UNLV point guard Jovan Mooring said. “That has been an issue for us the entire year. We have to communicate better on the floor, and we have to find shooters. Some guys are going to the wrong spots and leaving guys wide open.”
When that happens, so does this:
Utah State led 57-52 with 7:49 remaining.
The next six baskets for the Aggies:
Koby McEwen 3-pointer.
McEwen 3-pointer.
McEwen 3-pointer.
Shane Rector 3-pointer.
Julion Pearre 3-pointer.
Quinn Taylor 3-pointer.
Most of them were as open as a 24-hour drive-thru.
Four minutes and change later, it was 75-59.
The Rebels got lost in transition time and again while settling into their zone, and Utah State, one of the league’s best shooting teams, drilled them for it.
The Aggies shot 53 percent, including 13 of 21 on 3s.
McEwen, a freshman guard, scored 28.
“Lot of little things to clean up with that many open shots,” Mooring said. “(McEwen) made a lot of big shots, and once he got going, other guys started chipping in. Makes it hard to defend when they are falling like that.”
Contact columnist Ed Graney at egraney@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4618. He can be a heard on “Seat and Ed” on Fox Sports 1340 from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Follow @edgraney on Twitter.
