Las Vegas Sun

April 26, 2024

REBELS BASKETBALL:

UNLV set to open 2010-11 against overhauled UC Riverside

Rebels host Highlanders, who feature 10 new players under fourth-year coach Jim Wooldridge

UNLV vs. Washburn Exhibition

Sam Morris / Las Vegas Sun

UNLV forward Quintrell Thomas rejects a shot by Washburn forward Bobby Chipman during an exhibition game Tuesday. UNLV won the game 88-53.

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UNLV vs. UC Riverside

  • UNLV Rebels vs. UC Riverside Highanders

  • Where: Thomas & Mack Center (cap. 18,500)

  • When: 7:30 p.m.

  • Coaches: Lon Kruger is 137-62 in his seven seasons at UNLV and 455-295 in 25 overall seasons; Jim Wooldridge is 38-51 in his four seasons at UC Riverside and 349-288 in 24 overall seasons.

  • Series:UNLV leads, 11-1

  • Last time: UNLV won, 93-64, on Feb. 13, 1965, in Las Vegas.

  • Line: UNLV by 21.5.

  • TV/Radio:None/ESPN Radio 1100-AM

  • THE REBELS

  • G Oscar Bellfield (6-2, 185, Jr.)

  • G Anthony Marshall (6-3, 200, So.)

  • G Derrick Jasper (6-6, 215, Sr.)

  • F Chace Stanback (6-8, 210, Jr.)

  • F Quintrell Thomas (6-8, 245, So.)

  • Bench: F Brice Massamba (6-10, 240, Jr.); G Justin Hawkins (6-3, 190, So.); F Carlos Lopez (6-11, 215, Fr.).

  • What to watch: Not listed on the bench roster is freshman Karam Mashour, who may or may not play against the Highlanders, as his redshirt status for this season is still up in the air. Though inexperienced in the American game, the 6-foot-6 Israeli can provide added athleticism if he sees the floor.

  • THE HIGHLANDERS

  • G Javon Borum (5-11, 190, Sr.)

  • G Kareem Nitoto (6-1, 185, Jr.)

  • G Phil Martin (6-4, 200, Jr.)

  • F Elliott Berry (6-7, 210, Jr.)

  • F Kevin Bradshaw (6-8, 225, Jr.)

  • Bench: G Daymond Cowlah (6-0, 180, Fr.); F Tyquan Brown (6-7, 215, Jr.); G Andy Saharan (6-5, 180, So.); G Harrison Gaines (6-0, 170, Jr.); F B.J. Shearry (6-7, 220, Jr.); G Delonte Taylor (6-5, 205, Jr.); F David Chavarria (6-7, 220, Jr.).

  • What to watch: One of two returners from last season's roster, Borum missed the 2009-10 campaign with an achilles injury. In the Highlanders' exhibition victory over Cal State Los Angeles, he had a team-high 17 points in 23 minutes.

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Now it counts.

The UNLV men's basketball team thrashed a pair of Division-II exhibition opponents in the last two weeks as a primer for a 2010-11 season that carries high expectations.

The level of competition will technically bump up a notch when the Rebels host UC Riverside on Friday in a 7:30 p.m. contest at the Thomas & Mack.

Scouting the Highlanders? Far from easy.

They return only two players off of a team that in 2009-10 went 12-17 and finished last in the Big West. Junior forward David Chavarria recorded just 2.3 points and 2.5 rebounds as a little-used reserve, while senior guard Javon Borum redshirted while recovering from an Achilles injury.

That means 10 new faces — nine junior college transfers and one freshman. How they execute together under fourth-year coach Jim Wooldridge is a mystery to almost everyone.

UNLV coach Lon Kruger, though, feels as though his team has some early questions of its own to answer despite a strong performance in the exhibition season.

"You consider the (new) big guys, consider mixing (Tre'Von Willis) back in, you've got a lot of different things you have to deal with there," he said. "It's hard to know for sure how quickly it will all come together.

"This team will get better as the year goes on. How quickly they get into that full-stride pace, I'm not sure."

The Rebels will start the season with what, through two exhibition tilts, appears to be their optimal lineup: junior guard Oscar Bellfield, sophomore guard Anthony Marshall, senior swingman Derrick Jasper, junior forward Chace Stanback and sophomore forward Quintrell Thomas.

Stanback sat the first halves of each of the two preseason games after failing to meet academic requirements during the summer sessions. He's replacing junior Brice Massamba in the starting five. Massamba fouled out of Tuesday's 88-53 victory over Washburn after playing only 13 minutes.

Meanwhile, Stanback scored 23 points in 13 second-half minutes on 9-of-10 shooting and should make an explosive starting unit that much more potent.

Jasper and Marshall have flourished while flanking Bellfield, combining for 45 points and 17 rebounds in the two exhibitions, while Thomas appears ready to be the brute inside force the Rebels sorely lacked a year ago. In that same stretch, he's totaled 14 points and 12 boards in 38 minutes of run.

More rotation questions and combinations are sure to surface next week when it's appearing likely that Willis — the Rebels' leading scorer and a first-team All-Mountain West performer a year ago — will return from suspension stemming from off-season legal troubles.

For now, Kruger is thinking bigger picture as he's ready to begin a long season with a team he's tapped as the most athletic he's put on the floor in seven seasons in Las Vegas.

"Consistency for 40 minutes, rebounding for 40 minutes, defensive awareness, moving the ball offensively," he said of areas still needing the most growth. "That's not being negative. That's just the way it is on every campus. I thought we made progress from Grand Canyon to Washburn, and we need to continue that."

Wooldridge, Kruger have crossed paths

Kruger and Wooldridge have crossed paths during their lengthy coaching careers a couple of times.

Both had head coaching stints at Kansas State. Kruger went 81-47 in Manhattan, Kan., from 1986-90, including four NCAA tournament appearances while Wooldridge went 83-90 guiding the Wildcats from 2000-06.

The two also were acquaintances while working simultaneously in the NBA. Wooldridge was a Chicago Bulls assistant from 1998-2000. Kruger served as the Atlanta Hawks' head coach from 2000-03 and a New York Knicks aide from 2003-04.

No word on Mashour

Kruger said following Thursday morning's practice at the Mack that he'd be meeting later in the day with freshman swingman Karam Mashour and his uncle, Jason Awad, to discuss whether or not to redshirt this season.

A decision, though, might not be reached before Friday's game. How much Mashour plays — if at all — against the Highlanders could be telling in that regard.

Mashour scored 14 points and grabbed nine rebounds as a reserve in the two exhibitions, but at times looked confused on the defensive end of the floor. His skills and athleticism are apparent, but the 6-foot-6 Israeli is still adapting to the American game in several ways.

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