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Friday, March 18, 2011 | 8:27 p.m.
With less than two minutes remaining in the first half of the UNLV basketball team’s NCAA Tournament opener against Illinois, junior forward Chace Stanback aggressively drove the ball to the basket and scored while being fouled.
He proceeded to convert the 3-point play, but it was too little too late as the Rebels were already trailing by 20 points. Yes, it was that bad, especially on the offensive end.
UNLV went seven minutes without scoring a point in the first half, ultimately surrendering a 15-0 run during the drought in losing 73-62. In a nutshell, it was an ugly and embarrassing end to the season.
Illinois outscored the Rebels 32-13 in the final 13 minutes of the first half, with plays such as Stanback’s dribble-drive a rarity. Instead, Anthony Marshall heaved a pair of air balls on 3-point attempts, Justin Hawkins had a 3-pointer hit off the side of the backboard and the Rebels only made 7 of 28 first-half shots.
After making their initial two 3-pointers, the Rebels missed their next 10 attempts. Again, they settled for the outside shot, a problem that has plagued them all year. For the game, they only made 7 of 23 of their 3-pointers — a number that looks better than it was because of a few makes late.
Plain and simple, they were lost offensively and didn’t execute. You would hope the game plan included more than waiting around the 3-point arch and launching long-range shot after long-range shot. But then again, relying on the 3-pointer has long been what the Rebels live and die on. That’s a tough strategy when there aren’t many pure shooters on the roster.
But the shooting woes are nothing new. In previous games this year, however, they were able to overcome the cold shooting with a tenacious defensive effort and never-say-die attitude.
Against Illinois, they looked like a deer stuck in the headlights, completely scared after a bigger and faster Illinois squad proclaimed its authority from the opening tip. The Rebels were pushed around. They were out-muscled, out-hustled and had one of their worst defensive performances of the season, as Illinois made 57 percent of its shots.
There will be no run this year, with the Rebels falling in their first tournament game for the second straight season. And, please, don’t comment under this story that at least they made the tourney field. The expectations are higher than that.
Illinois seemed to be better at every position, especially at point guard where Demetri McCamey was easily the best player on the court. He had 12 of his 17 points in the first half and added seven assists. More importantly, he controlled the pace of the game, with UNLV frequently getting beat up and down the court. When was the last time that happened?
UNLV didn’t score a basket on the fast break until Anthony Marshall came up with a steal near midcourt with 14 minutes to play and hammered home a breakaway dunk. Again, when was the last time that happened to the Runnin’ Rebels?
The Rebels had been solid defensively most of the year, using that pressure to create easy baskets. The pressure against Illinois was virtually non-existent.
The Rebels, which had won 10 of 13 games entering, played one of their worst games of the season in what was supposed to be an evenly matched contest. Illinois certainly didn’t look like a team that had faded in the last month, having had lost 10 of 16 games.
That is why the defeat is so shocking. It’s not the fact UNLV lost, but the manner in which they were defeated — being absolutely steamrolled on national television. The game was seemingly over before it began.
Here’s how bad it got: With about 16 minutes remaining in the second half, color commentator Steve Kerr told viewers they could turn away to a more competitive game. It’s safe to say UNLV’s national reputation probably took a hit tonight, too.
Agreed. Pretty embarrassing when Kerr is telling people to watch a different game because UNLV decided not to show up. Barkley was making fun of UNLV all night. UNLV may have been better off playing in the NIT than to get embarrassed on national tv in front of the entire country while everyone was making fun of them. I'm sure this game won't help with recruiting. BYU and San Diego St had a lot of success this year and got a bunch of national attention and probably helped their recruiting out for the future. UNLV was suppose to be up there with them this year but instead regressed while they took off.
Sad, but true. The Rebel were beaten soundly. Maybe the worst lose in recent memory. Wow, a far cry from the defensive teams UNLV has had over the years. Boy, the Rebels look really bad. I feel bad for the guys.
Worst performance all year. It will be interesting to see what SDSU and BYU do against bigger, more athletic teams. Was this a case of the Rebels playing terribly inconsistent ball all year, yet still scraping with SDSU, or was it an underrated, athletic Illinois team peaking at the right time?
Illinois played very well, the Rebels played like they would have under Bayno and the result speaks for itself. Simply embarrassing.....
What was also embarrassing but not necessarily an effect on the outcome was the officiating. I went back and watched the first half again and there were 4 phantom calls whistled on the Rebels. The most prominent call occurred when the Rebels had pulled themselves back to 14-12, obtained a rebound on the defensive end and just as Jasper started up the floor the opposition tripped over him from behind (because he wasn't watching his own feet) and fell. I had to hit rewind 5 times to make sure I wasn't hallucinating as I heard the whistle blow and the call made against Jasper. What in the name of all that's holy? Illinois then went on their 15-0 run. Not that the run was due entirely to that call but wow.....
Ironic that later in the half Oscar drove the lane was hacked and then tripped and voila!....wouldn't ya know it....no call. It even brought comments from both of the announcers. Great non call guys, however, it was only one of several in the half.
Like I said, we definitely deserved to lose the way we played, I'm just sayin'......
Dear Fast Camron -- This "I'm just sayin" doesn't cut it. That's code for "yep, the refs helped beat us." That's just absolutely crazy----just sayin'.
After much thought... UNLV proved that they can't hang with the big schools. They're a solid MId-Major program. Lon is a good coach BUT we need to close on big time recruits. Kids that can elevate and take a game over (Jimmer, mccamey, leonard, etc.).
On the upside, I think this team will actually look much different next.....
-Add Wallace's ability to shoot
-QT should be improved in his 2nd year
-Moser is athletic and can add some energy
-Lopez might just prove to be a nice defensive presence in the post
-Stanback should see time @ the 3, his natural position
Maybe on the bright side, this might start speculation if Kruger is the right guy. I like what Kruger has done, but there are reasons why other schools let him go. I do agree that QT needs to be at power forward, with Lopez at center. Are there times you go with 4 guards? Sure, but it can't be all the time. Even BYU who wants to shoot 3s will still play two dopey big men. Other points that others have made, the recruiting etc, make me question if maybe we should go another direction as far as coaching.
Well Bart, when you're right you're right, the refs did help beat us.
I love your absolutes. You know me from when.........and you can call me crazy?
I don't know you but you sure are acting like a jerk for attacking me like that.....just sayin'.
As long as the Rebels tried hard, I support them. Thanks for an entertaining season. Good luck to the graduating seniors.
www.RebelReign.com
Run-nRebels,
Only the Atlanta Hawks let Kruger go. He chose to leave Florida and Illinois for better gigs.