UNLV season recap: Promising team slowly fell apart

At one point, UNLV was 7-1 and had beaten Indiana and Oregon, two basketball teams that would go on to win the Big Ten and Pac-12 conference titles.

Rebels fans were wondering if their team would get ranked and began looking ahead to March and what those two victories in particular could mean to placement in the NCAA Tournament.

Now the Rebels are searching for a new coach and hoping they can keep the core of the roster together as well as the four-player recruiting class that signed in November.

As we look back at the 2015-16 season, there was no single event that caused it to go horribly wrong; it just unraveled slowly:

* Goodluck Okonoboh quit Nov. 27, a week before the Oregon game.

* UNLV blew a 12-point halftime lead at home to Arizona State and was outscored 41-19 in the second half. That 66-56 loss began a sluggish stretch of play that impacted the rest of the season.

* The Rebels opened Mountain West play with three losses by a combined six points.

* Coach Dave Rice was fired Jan. 10 and replaced by Todd Simon on an interim basis.

* Ben Carter tore his left anterior cruciate ligament on Jan. 30 and was lost for the season.

* Stephen Zimmerman Jr. sprained his left knee on Feb. 6 and missed five games.

* Dwayne Morgan separated his right shoulder on Feb. 20 and didn’t play the rest of the season.

* The ACT alerted UNLV on Feb. 29 it had vacated the test score for Derrick Jones Jr., causing the NCAA to rule him ineligible.

* UNLV’s season ended Thursday in a 95-82 loss to Fresno State in the quarterfinals of the Mountain West tournament at the Thomas & Mack Center. That gave the Rebels an 18-15 record for the second season in a row.

“It’s no secret we’ve been through a lot this year, and it’s just a testament to the coaching staff and the kind of character guys we have on the team,” senior guard Ike Nwamu said. “Our whole theme was to stay together and stay strong and make sure we persevered through everything, and that’s really what we did.”

As for the current roster, here are the chances of each player returning. Keep in mind the identity of the next coach will affect these players’ decisions, but these predictions are based on UNLV making a choice that sits well in the locker room.

Carter: He could transfer as a senior graduate and play right away, but Carter came from Oregon to suit up for his hometown university. Expect him back.

Jordan Cornish: The Rebels could use his ability to shoot, though Cornish needs to become more consistent. Expect him back.

Tyrell Green: Was shut down early because of various injuries. Could’ve been a productive player. Expect him back.

Jones: Decent chance he was returning to UNLV before being ruled ineligible. That decision probably was just enough to nudge him out the door and try his chances with the NBA, though Jones could use at least another season in college.

Patrick McCaw: Was UNLV’s best player, but after two seasons, will explore his pro prospects. Could use another year in school, but chances probably are close to even he’s gone.

Morgan: Has not met expectati0ns, and knowing he has plenty to work on, as well as the bitter taste of a season-ending injury, probably brings him back.

Chris Obekpa: Redshirted this season, and will be UNLV’s starting center in 2016-17.

Jalen Poyser: Showed tremendous potential at times, but also the inconsistency of a freshman. Expect him back.

Austin Starr: Played more than expected as a walk-on, and maybe Starr works his way into a scholarship when he comes back.

Zimmerman: Difficult to picture any scenario in which he returns.

“Obviously, (Zimmerman) and a number of our guys are going to have choices to make, and that’s a good thing,” Simon said. “They’ve worked hard. They gave it all they had. Obviously, the NBA is a futures market. So guys like he and Pat and Derrick — these guys that have performed and have tremendous upsides and shown what they can do — they’re going to have great decisions to make.”

Contact Mark Anderson at manderson@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2914. Follow him on Twitter: @markanderson65