Brace for bracket season

Sam Morris

The Rebels thank fans Saturday after their 76-61 defeat of Brigham Young in the conference tournament championship game at the Thomas & Mack Center.

By Rob Miech (contact)

Tuesday, March 18, 2008 | 2 a.m.

UNLV freshman guard Kendall Wallace kept a keen eye on Kent State’s victory at Saint Mary’s on Feb. 23.

If Rebels coach Lon Kruger hadn’t called Wallace in Arizona, he likely would have gone to Saint Mary’s.

The eighth-seeded Rebels (26-7) start the NCAA Tournament on Thursday against the ninth-seeded Kent State Golden Flashes (28-6) in Omaha, Neb.

“They have good guards,” Wallace said of the Flashes. “And one really good guard who killed Saint Mary’s. They are directed by their guard play.”

Al Fisher, a 6-foot-1 junior point guard from New Jersey, pelted Saint Mary’s with a game-high 28 points.

Don’t be too enamored with the Golden Flashes, though. On the second day of 2008, they were crushed by top-ranked North Carolina in Chapel Hill.

We’re not saying that’s the fate that awaits Kent State in Omaha on Thursday, but UNLV will have a lot going for it when it takes part in the NCAAs for a second consecutive season.

Here’s what will have to take place for the Rebels to advance to a second-round game against top-seeded Kansas on Saturday:

1. Taking care of the ball

UNLV has been one of the best teams in the nation at cherishing each possession. It’s been in the top 10 all season in assist-to-turnover ratio and fewest turnovers. Kent State likes to disrupt its foes, but it will find that the Rebels aren’t easily rattled.

2. No 7-footer?

UNLV forward Joe Darger finally gets to contain someone his own size. That will be Haminn Quaintance, a 6-7, 216-pound senior who was the best Golden Flash against Carolina. He shoots a team-best 61 percent. Problem is, that’s also what he shoots at the free-throw line. Darger should make Q earn everything.

3. Sure, Fisher’s good

But he will need plenty of help trying to contain Wink Adams, who is bigger and tougher than Heels leader Ty Lawson. Adams will flummox Fisher with his deadly 3-point shooting. Fisher, who turned it over six times against Carolina, will reach for the Excedrin by halftime.

4. Bombs away

The Flashes haven’t seen any team jack 3-pointers the way the Rebels do. Kent shoots it well, too. But Q will have trouble trying to keep a lid on Darger out beyond the arc. Plus, UNLV learned plenty about its own durability when it weathered that long-range barrage against TCU to open the Mountain West tourney.

5. Coaching

Jim Christian has been a head coach for six seasons. He’s been in one NCAA Tournament. UNLV veteran boss Lon Kruger has taken four programs to the NCAAs, including Florida to a Final Four, and he guided the Rebels to the Sweet 16 a year ago. “He knows how to get results,” UNLV senior guard Curtis Terry said of Kruger. “We respect the game and have fun.”

Prediction: UNLV 75, Kent State 61