UNLV Rebels visit Canada

Sam Morris / Las Vegas Sun

UNLV guard Anthony Marshall laughs at teammate Justin Hawkins after a possession against the University of Ottawa at Montpetit Hall in Ottawa, Ontario Sunday, August 19, 2012. UNLV won the game 89-76. The Runnin' Rebels are in the midst of a four-game exhibition tour in Canada.

Rebels report card: Returners work back into rhythm with varying success

Anthony Marshall is already at an A-level while Mike Moser puts up a standard performance, at least for his standards

Aug 26, 2012 (2 a.m.)

By Taylor Bern

You already know their faces, and whether they like it or not, you already know what you think they bring to the team. UNLV basketball’s five returning scholarship players are mostly household names by now, in some cases even in homes far across the country.

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  Rebels report card: Several newcomers receive high marks

  August 26, 2012

  By Taylor Bern

  For the dozens of UNLV basketball fans who followed the Rebels from Las Vegas to Ottawa and Montreal, the four-game exhibition tour last week was like getting a glimpse at the rough cut of a movie months before the grand opening.

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  Canada trip, including 74-59 win at McGill in finale, puts some of Rebels’ pieces in place

  August 21, 2012

  By Taylor Bern

  The UNLV basketball players on scholarship who didn’t play in Tuesday’s 74-59 victory against McGill could end up being some of the most important contributors this season. Those four — freshmen Katin Reinhardt and Anthony Bennett, sophomore Khem Birch and junior Roscoe Smith — alone could be the nucleus of a separate top-25 team.

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  Rebels in Montreal
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  Winning week: UNLV’s 4-0 record in Canada allows it to focus on important things from trip

  August 22, 2012

  By Taylor Bern

  The outcome of the games UNLV played over the last four days doesn’t actually mean anything, at least not in the same way it will in the regular season. The Rebels went 4-0, including Tuesday’s finale, a 74-59 victory against McGill, but you won’t find that record in any standings.

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  UNLV vs. McGill
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  Dunk fest: Rebels run away from Laval 97-62 in easiest victory of their Canadian tour

  August 20, 2012

  By Taylor Bern

  There were really no season-impacting lessons to take away from UNLV’s 97-62 runaway victory against Laval in McGill’s Love Competition Hall on Monday night. The Rebels, who moved to 3-0 in their four-game Canadian exhibition tour, were the better team by a margin wider than the final score, and they played like it from the start of the game.

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  UNLV vs. Laval
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  Bryce Dejean-Jones leads charge as UNLV pulls away for 89-76 victory

  August 19, 2012

  By Taylor Bern

  The missed shots around the basket were adding up, a pile of points unscored left for Bryce Dejean-Jones to rummage through and pull out for momentum-changing baskets.

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  Khem Birch watches UNLV dispatch Ottawa before it heads to his native Montreal

  August 20, 2012

  By Taylor Bern

  If you’re a UNLV basketball fan, there’s a fun game you can play during the Rebels’ games up in Canada. It’s sort of a fill in the blank format, and it goes like this: On any given play at any point in the game, how would it play out if UNLV coach Dave Rice had his full compliment of scholarship players?

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  UNLV vs. University of Ottawa
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  Katin Reinhardt steps up in his debut, leading UNLV to a 74-70 victory at Carleton

  August 18, 2012

  By Taylor Bern

  Mike Moser sounded like a witness whose eyes had finally confirmed the rumors he’d heard all summer. Taking a seat on the bench during a timeout in the second half of UNLV’s exhibition game at Carleton on Saturday, Moser leaned toward freshman Katin Reinhardt and shared his findings with the man himself. “They telling the truth,” Moser yelled into his teammate’s right ear, “the kid can ball.”

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  First impressions: 5 Rebels’ debuts in victory at Carleton

  August 19, 2012

  By Taylor Bern

  There’s no second chance to make a first impression. For the Rebels fans in Carleton’s Norm Fenn Gym on Saturday and those who watch a replay of the game on UNLVRebels.com, this is the first point of reference they’ll have for the five newcomers participating in this Canadian tour. Exhibition or not, UNLV’s 74-70 victory mattered. The hype around this year’s team is as high as it has ever been and many people traveled a long way to get their first glimpse at this year’s team and the new faces filling it out.

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  UNLV vs. Carleton Exhibition
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  Rebels explore Ottawa after rude awakening their first night in town

  August 17, 2012

  By Taylor Bern

  Carlos Lopez yelled at Demetris Morant because he thought the TV was too loud. Quintrell Thomas woke up angry with Mike Moser for making too much noise. “He thought I was playing games, messing with him,” Moser said.

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  North of the border: Get to know UNLV’s opponents on its Canadian tour

  August 16, 2012

  By Taylor Bern

  With so much attention on the Rebels basketball team leading up to this four-game exhibition tour in Canada, it’s easy to forget UNLV is actually playing other squads.

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  First-year successes were nice, but coach Rice says he’s still developing

  August 14, 2012

  By Ray Brewer

  When the UNLV basketball team opens play this week in Canada for its exhibition tour, eyes will be on players' improvements from last year. But they won’t be the only ones with noticeable upgrades to their performances.

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  UNLV’s Carlos Lopez and Quintrell Thomas working hard to get on the court

  August 9, 2012

  By Taylor Bern

  Far away from the headlines and the hype, UNLV post players Carlos Lopez and Quintrell Thomas spent their summer in relative anonymity. Each one of those heralded recruits UNLV hauled in pushed the duo further out of the public eye and closer to roster irrelevance.

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  Roscoe Smith a picture of calm amid the uncertainty about his immediate eligibility

  August 8, 2012

  By Taylor Bern

  Roscoe Smith isn’t in a hurry. His moments in the public eye currently consist of sitting at the scorer’s table during UNLV’s practices for its upcoming trip to Canada, then taking shots after his teammates have vacated the floor. It looks like a frustrating position for a kid who already owns a national championship ring, but his easy smile suggests otherwise.

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  Moser’s new position a focal point in Rebels’ first practice for upcoming Canada tour

  August 5, 2012

  By Taylor Bern

  The evidence at the end of this season may prove him wrong, but from Mike Moser’s new-ish view on the wing he doesn’t see any reason he can’t rebound at the same rate he did last year. UNLV has the bodies to handle the offense on the block without him. Still, Moser and coach Dave Rice know it’s still in the team’s best interest to let the nation’s 10th-leading rebounder last year go after every loose ball he can.

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  Rebels begin all-important practices for Canada exhibition tour on Saturday

  August 3, 2012

  By Taylor Bern

  From the moment the 2011-12 season ended, when a furious rally against Colorado came up short and UNLV lost its fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament game, the focus turned to 2012-13. What would coach Dave Rice and his staff be capable of accomplishing in Year Two?