UNLV’s loss to Utah was all too predictable

Steve Addy

Monday, Jan. 14, 2002 | 11:12 a.m.

Midway through the season, it's getting tougher for the Rebels to dismiss repeated mistakes as quirks, or claim that their many shortcomings can be cured by simply working harder.

By this point, a team starts being what it's destined to be, and after 14 games the evidence strongly suggests that UNLV is only good enough to beat teams it is "supposed" to beat, while struggling mightily against superior opponents.

So far the Rebels' eight wins and six losses have come largely as the schedule might have predicted. Teams UNLV has beaten are a combined 45-64 against Division I opponents and have an average RPI ranking of 206, while teams that have beaten UNLV are 59-29 with an average RPI of 69.

The Rebels aren't playing their conquerors close, either. Five of the losses have been by double figures, and the only near-upset was an 11-point loss to Texas that got away from them at the end.

This doesn't mean the Rebels (RPI 97) are incapable of gaining a quality win, a theory they'd like to prove Tuesday night at BYU (11-3, RPI 41). Their schedule even portends a resurgence, with nine of their next 14 games at home, including their Mountain West tournament opener.

But as Saturday's 86-63 loss at Utah vividly illustrated, UNLV has to play darn near perfect to compete against good teams, especially on the road. And when the Rebels play decidedly imperfect -- giving up 17 3-pointers meets the criteria -- they are courting embarrassment.

The most alarming aspect of the rout was that Utah didn't have to attack the Rebels' biggest weakness to win by 23. Rather than pound the ball inside against UNLV's size-needy lineup, the Utes launched spot-up 3-pointers over the Rebels' guards from start to finish.

It was as if UNLV was playing a prevent defense. Even in the man-to-man, the Rebels allowed Utah's gunners way too much room, often after being slowed up by screens. They were unable to recover quickly enough, so most of the Utes' 3-pointers were lightly contested.

Their shooting stats looked like it, too. Utah made nine of its first 11 3-pointers, including eight straight, accounting for 27 of its 39 points in the half.

While the Rebels were grasping at air, coach Charlie Spoonhour tried to throw off the Utes by switching to a 3-2 zone midway through the half. That only made things worse, as Utah guard Nick Jacobsen (26 points, five 3s) and friends took a step back and kept making rainbow shots.

Utah wound up making 17 of 26 3-pointers, breaking its school record and tying for the most in MWC history. Overall, the Utes shot 62 percent (29 of 47).

"We were standing near people, acting like we're guarding them when we're not," Spoonhour said. "You can't let them stand and shoot. That is their strength, and we let them do it. We have to fight through screens better."

That's one area where playing harder would help the Rebels, but some of their other troubles seem incurable, especially halfway through the season.

They're not going to get any bigger, so they will continue to struggle for inside scoring and tough rebounds. Their bench remains thin and inconsistent, though guard Jevon Banks played 21 energetic minutes Saturday. And their shooting is still flip-a-coin, especially if they don't probe long enough for an open shot.

"We have guys standing open, but then we would force a shot," Spoonhour said. "When people score on us, we have a tendency to break. We don't keep our composure well enough, and we come down and start doing things individually."

It didn't even help that Spoonhour started No. 3 scorer Lou Kelly for the first time all season, inserting him in favor of center Omari Pearson. Kelly shot 1-of-4, extending his slump to 4-of-30 over the last four games.

Spoonhour said he will determine Tuesday if Pearson will start at BYU.