Columnist Dean Juipe: Lady Rebels find points are elusive

Dean Juipe

Monday, Dec. 30, 2002 | 9:55 a.m.

Dean Juipe's column appears Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. His boxing notebook appears Thursday. Reach him at juipe@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4084.

It isn't as easy as it once was for the Lady Rebels.

Of course, it wasn't expected to be.

This season, for the first time since 1998, they're playing without a bona fide major star and scoring machine, what with Linda Frohlich having graduated and advanced to the Women's National Basketball Association.

Those who were left behind and those who were added have to scrap and battle for points. It's no longer a case of "Get the ball to Linda and get out of the way."

It's a difference that has probably been evident in every game they've played this season and it certainly was on a sleepy Sunday afternoon at the Cox Pavilion, as the Lady Rebels had their resourcefulness challenged by visiting Nevada-Reno. UNLV won 60-55 and is 7-3, yet it's clear that points can be hard to come by without a dominant, individual scorer.

This version of the Lady Rebels is neither great nor underachieving. They have their liabilities yet they work hard, and a decent, holiday-spirited crowd was appreciative of the collective effort.

But with scoring leader Constance Jinks off her game (particularly in the first half) and then curtailed by foul trouble in the second, UNLV's lack of firepower was unmistakably apparent.

Where head coach Regina Miller looks to compensate is by shuffling fresh bodies in and out, and placing a heavy emphasis on in-game instruction. In her favor is the fact she starts four seniors and gets decent productivity out of the fifth, sophomore Sherry McCracklin.

She may have had the key single play in the win over Reno, which was behind throughout the game but usually within hailing distance. A spirited rebound and put-back basket, plus an ensuing free throw from McCracklin made it 24-16 and -- at least temporarily -- seemed to shake UNLV out of its early second-half doldrums.

It was a game of spurts for the Lady Rebels, who would score six or eight points in a row and then surrender a few in return. For instance, a 10-2 lead to open the game was soon whittled to a three-point lead at 15-12, after which UNLV went back up 20-12.

The pattern continued in the second half, even after McCracklin's three-point play and a couple of hoops by freshman guard Sheena Moore had the Lady Rebels feeling the game was in hand with a comfortable 38-23 lead. But the Wolf Pack, which is a decidedly mediocre team in spite of its identical 7-3 record, fought back to add a little suspense, although it can also be said the final score was a bit deceptive.

Jinks is to the Lady Rebels what Marcus Banks is to the UNLV men's team. Well, let me be more specific: Jinks isn't a future professional player and Banks almost certainly is, but her importance to her team is equivalent to what Banks means to the Rebels. So when she's not making her shots -- most of which are on penetrations in the lane -- the team suffers because it doesn't have a secondary star along the lines of Dalron Johnson or Demetrius Hunter as the men do.

A league championship or a bid to the NCAA Tournament isn't likely in the cards for the Lady Rebels. But that's not to say there isn't something pleasant and refreshing about them, and oftentimes that's good enough.