Rebels seek patience at Bradley

Steve Guiremand

Friday, Dec. 13, 2002 | 10:13 a.m.

What: UNLV at Bradley When: Saturday, 5 p.m. Where: Carver Arena, Peoria Ill. Civic Center Radio: KBAD 920-AM

Patience and rebounding are a couple of virtues that UNLV basketball coach Charlie Spoonhour would like to see a little more of from his squad when it returns to action Saturday night against Bradley in Peoria, Ill.

The Rebels (4-1) have spent a week of practice trying to improve those flaws, which played key roles in their first loss of the season last Saturday, 91-74 at Wisconsin.

UNLV was outrebounded by the Badgers, 48-36. The Rebels also shot 45.1 percent from the floor in part because of some rushed and forced shots from the perimeter with plenty of time still remaining on the shot clock.

"We just need to make better decisions with the basketball," point guard Marcus Banks said. "We need to slow down and take our time and we'll basically get any shot we want."

The Rebels seemed to do a better job of that in the second half at Wisconsin and cut an 18-point deficit all the way down to five points, 77-72, with 5:26 remaining. The Badgers put the game away at the free throw line in the final few minutes.

"I think (the loss) may have benefitted us," guard Demetrius Hunter said. "We've had some good practices this week. Right now we all know that we're not all that everybody had built us up to be. We had someone show us early that we could be beaten.

"One thing Wisconsin showed us is we have to rebound. I mean they just crushed us on the boards. I have to get in there and help rebound. That's one thing (Spoonhour) talked to me and Marcus about. And also our shot selection. We worked on swinging the ball around and getting a decent shot instead of making just one pass and shooting it like we've been doing."

The Rebels are also waiting for Hunter and swingman Jermaine Lewis to get their jump shots back. Both sat out the 2000-01 season and have started slowly. Lewis is shooting just 29.3 percent from the floor (12 of 41) and 18.8 percent from 3-point range (3 of 16) while Hunter is shooting 39 percent from the floor (16 of 41) and 38.1 percent on treys (8 of 21).

"I don't feel totally comfortable out there yet," Hunter admitted. "I'm sure it will come back to me after a while. Right now I just have to play hard and that will make up for a lot of the other stuff."

Bradley (2-3) is coming off a 75-70 road loss at Butler on Tuesday night. The Braves, coached by first-year head coach Jim Les, return four starters from a team that finished 9-20 overall and eighth in the Missouri Valley Conference at 5-13.

Bradley is led in scoring by 6-foot-3 junior guard Phillip Gilbert (23.2 ppg) and 6-foot-8 sophomore forward Danny Granger (20.4 ppg).

"I don't know anything about them and I don't care if I know anything about them," Banks said. "We just need to go out there and take care of business and come back with a victory."

Following Saturday night's game, the Rebels begin a six-game homestand at the Thomas & Mack Center beginning with a Tuesday night game against Tennessee-Martin.