UNLV-San Diego State report card

BACKCOURT: B-

Patrick McCaw made great use of his first start. When UNLV staggered out of the gates, McCaw quickly asserted himself and got his teammates going. It wasn’t enough as the Rebels wore down in a 53-47 loss at San Diego State, but McCaw certainly wasn’t the problem. He slowed down a bit in the second half, but did finish with 15 points, six rebounds, three assists and three steals. His impact was felt even beyond the numbers, too. McCaw provided everything the UNLV coaching staff could have hoped for when it decided to put him in the starting lineup. Rashad Vaughn scored in spurts, particularly in the second half. He made several key baskets to help the Rebels stretch the lead to 11 points shortly after halftime. Vaughn scored a game-high 17 points. Both McCaw and Vaughn made 3 of 6 from beyond the arc. Cody Doolin never could get a step on San Diego State’s aggressive backcourt defenders. His inability to create any separation led to many stagnant possessions where the Rebels couldn’t even get into their offense until the final 10 seconds of the shot clock. He committed two turnovers and had just three assists. It was far from Doolin’s best game.

FRONTCOURT: D

Fans have complained about Chris Wood’s effort all year. His numbers have been so good, however, that it has been difficult to truly take exception with his performance. That changed on Saturday. Wood made just one of the four shots he attempted and pulled down only three rebounds in the loss. There were times he barely appeared to even be a part of the action. He was simply awful in his 32 minutes of action. Wood also turned the ball over three times to nullify his three blocked shots. Conversely, Goodluck Okonoboh was active and effective. He finished with 11 points, three rebounds and three blocks while making 5 of 7 shots. Both players shared much of the blame for San Diego State’s dominance on the glass. It was always going to be difficult for UNLV to out-rebound the Aztecs, but it wasn’t even much of a contest. San Diego State won the battle 36-25, which was a major factor in the outcome.

BENCH: F

What bench? UNLV’s bench failed to produce a single point in the game. A big factor was Patrick McCaw’s insertion in the starting lineup, but the remaining players have to produce something when they’re on the floor. Jordan Cornish missed his only shot and Dwayne Morgan went 0-for-2. Jelan Kendrick, usually a starter, didn’t even take a shot in 10 minutes of action. San Diego State was able to get 19 points from its bench and the depth showed. UNLV’s starters were completely worn down by the end of the game and it allowed the Aztecs to win going away.

COACHING: C-

Dave Rice made a lineup change, though it wasn’t quite as dramatic as had been hinted throughout the week. Putting Patrick McCaw in the starting lineup provided an early spark for UNLV. That was the good. The negative to the move was that the Rebels were left with nothing off the bench. Not only did the backups fail to score, Rice couldn’t trust them to even play enough to provide the starters a break. The result was a completely worn down team late in the game. Rice also kept Okonoboh in the game late with four fouls and the freshman simply stepped aside on multiple possessions and allowed San Diego State players to go by him for easy baskets. He either needs to come out of the game or be told to continue to play aggressive defense. It does no good to be on the floor if you’re going to offer no resistance. Rice does get credit for mixing defenses effectively throughout the first half to keep the Aztecs off balance. UNLV held San Diego State to just 25 percent shooting in the first 20 minutes as a result.

Contact reporter Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5509. Follow him on Twitter: @adamhilllvrj.