Thomas fills crucial hole for Rebels

At this point in the season, senior Quintrell Thomas expected to be a role player. What he did not expect was to be in a starting role.

But when junior forward Mike Moser was lost to a dislocated right elbow Dec. 9, UNLV was left with a big hole to fill, and the 6-foot-8-inch Thomas answered the call.

"With everything, there is always opportunity," he said. "I hate to see Mike go down, and I guess my situation has improved because of it. But Mike will be coming back soon enough, and I'm just trying to play my role until that happens."

Thomas' play is a big reason the Rebels are 9-1 and ranked No. 21 as they prepare in short order to face Northern Iowa (6-4) at 7 p.m. today at the Thomas & Mack Center.

Filling in for the injured Moser, Thomas came off the bench and hit a layup with 1.2 seconds remaining to beat California 76-75, and then on Monday night, his putback with 2:07 left was UNLV's last basket in its 62-60 win at Texas-El Paso.

Thomas, who did not start a game as a junior, will make his fourth start of the season at center when the Rebels make a quick turnaround to play a tricky opponent. UNLV's return flight from El Paso was delayed Tuesday, so coach Dave Rice held only a brief film session and walkthrough at the Mendenhall Center in the evening.

Rice said the limited preparation time for the Panthers is "always a concern." Thomas said the scare the Rebels survived on the road fixed their focus.

"We just faced adversity, and I don't think anybody wants to go through that feeling of uncertainty again," Thomas said. "We're glad to be back home."

No one player has compensated for the productivity of Moser, who averaged 10.9 points and 8.3 rebounds in seven games. Thomas, junior Carlos Lopez-Sosa and freshman Savon Goodman have combined to pick up the slack.

Thomas totaled four points and five rebounds in 19 minutes against the Miners, while Lopez-Sosa had seven points in 17 minutes. In addition, sophomore center Khem Birch, a transfer from Pittsburgh, became eligible Monday and figures to play a larger role.

"I have a lot of faith in Quintrell," Rice said. "The great thing about Quintrell is we can always put him on the other team's best low-post offensive player, and he's physical and can guard one on one.

"I've talked about all the new faces that we have, but at the same time we also have some experienced guys who have raised the level of their games, and Quintrell and Carlos are two of the guys that come to mind."

Six of UNLV's top 11 players are newcomers, but Rice said youth won't be used as an excuse - or a legitimate reason - for any of the team's growing pains.

"You won't hear me talk anymore about needing game experience, because now we're 10 games into this thing," Rice said. "I believe that we're actually making progress, and we need to take the next step now."

Thomas will draw an important defensive assignment against Northern Iowa, which features talented forwards Seth Tuttle and Jake Koch. The Panthers run a disciplined offensive system, similar to UTEP, that tends to pose problems for the Rebels.

"We're a fast-break and up-tempo team, but when the game slows down, it definitely doesn't help us," Thomas said. "This is one of those games where it's kind of an annoying team to play because everybody shoots the 3. Obviously, the 3-point shot is a great equalizer, and we don't want to let them get going and get confident."

In the last meeting between the teams, in the first round of the 2010 NCAA Tournament, Ali Farokhmanesh's 3-pointer with five seconds left lifted Northern Iowa to a 69-66 victory.

Thomas, a redshirt transfer from Kansas, was a spectator for that game. He gets to play a far more important role in the rematch.

Contact reporter Matt Youmans at myoumans@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2907. Follow him on Twitter: @mattyoumans247.