Lady Rebels get an assist from all-male scout team

When classes started last fall, UNLV assistant coach Mia Bell was on the prowl, looking for players to join the women’s basketball team.

Bell put up flyers around dorms, watched games at the rec center, approached people on campus and did whatever else she could to find players.

But Bell wasn’t looking for women — she was looking for men.

Division I women’s teams utilize male students on campus for their “scout team,” a group that provides competition in practice.

Many of the men — depending on their academic year and the number of practices they attend — must go through the NCAA Eligibility Center as they officially become student-athletes themselves.

“You think it’s like sign them up and then come and play. I wish it were that simple,” Bell said. “We would have way more, because once they start doing the process, that’s when people start to flake out as well because it’s not a two-day thing. It takes time.”

Inevitably, those interested start dropping off. Maybe their class schedule conflicts. Maybe they need to get a job. Maybe the commitment was too big.

For those that do stay, though, like Michael Larson and Kai Campbell, they become an integral part of the team.

“If you have good scout guys, consistent scout guys that come in and you know that you can count on them, it’s a huge asset for your program because … they prep you,” coach Kathy Olivier said. “They get you ready.”

Campbell and Larson are two of the team’s scout guys that come to every practice.

Campbell joined the team last season after the Gonzalez twins, Dylan and Dakota, whom he went to high school with in Idaho, told him about it.

Larson, a Silverado High School graduate, joined this season.

Along with the other scout team guys at practice on any given day, they are heavily involved from the start to the finish.

“Some other schools, I know they’ll just have them do five-on-five stuff, and then besides that, they don’t use them, and (we) actually use them in almost every single drill,” junior guard Nikki Wheatley said. “It’s literally everything. They’ll use them to pass if we’re doing walk-up threes, different things like that, shooting stuff, we’ll use them to pass, to rebound, so they are involved the whole entire practice.”

Before every game, the scout team will transform itself into the next team the Lady Rebels play.

Coaches prep the scout team on future opponents and their style of play and then the scout team emulates that. This week the Lady Rebels were preparing for games Wednesday against UNR and Saturday at 2 p.m. at San Jose State.

“The girls have to play against us while we’re running (opponents’) plays so that they can recognize in game those plays and how to play against them,” Larson said.

If they’re trying to replicate a tall, athletic guard or possibly a solid post, Larson might fill that role. If they need a really good shooter, that’s the role for Campbell.

“This is one of the most beneficial things, because when they are able to run the other team’s offense, the other team is not going to be as athletic as the guys,” Wheatley said. “The other team’s not going to be as fast as the guys. There’s no team we’re going to play that’s going to, so it’s kind of cool to be overprepared for teams.”

A PURPOSE ON CAMPUS

Campbell played high school basketball for two years.

When he was asked about joining, he figured it would be fun to have the opportunity to play basketball again.

It turned into something that was more than just fun — now it’s something he’s invested in.

“I look forward to coming to practice every day and competing with the girls and trying to make them better and then seeing the results when they go out on the court and hopefully come out with W’s,” Campbell said.

Larson tried out a couple of things when he came to college. He tried a fraternity for a little bit, he has a radio show and, of course, there are classes to attend.

But joining the scout team got him back playing basketball and gave him an important role on campus.

“Having something here at UNLV that needs me basically, the team needs me — they’ve always said that they need me and Kai — and so feeling needed and having a purpose is the best part about it,” Larson said.

And make no mistake, the Lady Rebels are vocal about how vital their scout team is to their success, which is why Bell goes to such a length to recruit them.

“To be able to go against someone that’s not your team, to compete with someone who’s bigger, stronger, faster than you, it’s no substitute for that,” Bell said. “No matter how hard it is to get them, we have to have them. Whatever I have to do, I’m going to find scout guys because it’s a must, and I understand how important that is from a player’s aspect and a coach’s aspect.”

Contact Betsy Helfand at bhelfand@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BetsyHelfand on Twitter.