Mountain West is business as usual for Menzies, Rebels

By Mike Grimala (contact)

Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2016 | 2 a.m.

When UNLV (7-6) opens the Mountain West portion of its schedule tonight at Colorado State, coach Marvin Menzies expects to see the same Rebels team he’s put on the floor 13 times already this season.

Sure, the Mountain West presents some quirky challenges — tough travel itineraries, altitude adjustments, disparate styles of play, veteran opponents — but Menzies has been through it all before. Although this is his first year at UNLV, he’s got nearly a decade of head coaching experience and a strong track record in league play at his last stop, and he wants his players to approach MWC opponents the same way they’ve approached every other game so far.

That means no huge alterations to the game plan and no super-secret plays diagramed on the chalkboard. Menzies only expects his team to be well-prepared and play hard.

“We’re not going to do a lot of things differently in conference,” Menzies said. “On the court, you hope that the players ratchet it up and hope you see a different level of focus. But in terms of preparation — how you scout, how you travel, how you prepare for the game — none of that changes.”

Menzies had great success against league opponents at New Mexico State, running up a 103-37 record over nine seasons in the Western Athletic Conference, and that was surely one of the main points in his favor when UNLV tapped him for the head coaching job.

That consistency, on a game-to-game and year-to-year basis, is Menzies’ strength as a coach, and he believes his success in the WAC will eventually translate to the Mountain West. The key, he says, will be getting good players and putting them in position to play to their strengths. Everything else, including matching up with the idiosyncrasies of the league, takes a backseat to that much broader game plan.

So whether the Rebels are playing a slow-down defensive team like San Diego State, a fast-paced squad like UNR or a 3-point bombing offense like Wyoming, Menzies doesn’t anticipate devising radically different game plans or asking his players to do things they’re not accustomed to doing.

“There’s only so many different ways you can play the game,” Menzies said. “It really comes back down to players … As far as X’s and O’s and defensive principles and systems, I think it’s pretty much the same from conference to conference.”

UNLV will spend the next 10 weeks getting very familiar with the rest of the Mountain West. UNR (11-2) looks like the favorite, with a dynamic offense and a tough defense, all fronted by future NBA forward Cameron Oliver (15.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.1 blocks per game). San Diego State (8-4) will pile up a dozen or so league victories on the strength of its defense, as usual. Wyoming (10-3), Boise State (7-4) and New Mexico (7-5) will form the next tier of challengers, and everything after that is up in the air — including UNLV’s fate.

The Mountain West once again appears to be a one-bid league, and there are no juggernauts or Final Four contenders on the schedule. Every team’s NCAA tournament chances will depend on the league tourney in March. That gives the Rebels 18 games to work out the kinks and fine-tune their execution before the games really count.

The journey starts Wednesday, against a Colorado State (8-5) team that has been up and down over the first 13 games. Since getting high-scoring guard Gian Clavell back from a nine-game suspension, the Rams have gone 1-3, including a current three-game losing streak.

UNLV enters the game as a 6-point underdog, and if the Rebels want to make an upset play, they’ll need Jalen Poyser to contribute offensively. The sophomore guard is still UNLV’s leading scorer at 14.2 points per game, but after hitting double figures in each of the team’s first nine games, he’s averaged just 7.3 points over the Rebels’ last four contests.

Poyser will likely be marked by Colorado State’s best defensive player, 6-foot-1 sophomore guard Prentiss Nixon, who is holding opponents to 25.3 percent shooting this season. If Poyser’s slump continues, it will be tough for UNLV to keep pace offensively.

Menzies isn’t worried about Poyser’s production, noting that he has been contributing in other ways and resisting the urge to force difficult shots.

“The most important thing that I’m looking for is wins, and players need to do what it takes for us to win,” Menzies said. “Sometimes it’s scoring, sometimes it assists, sometimes its defense. Jalen’s points are not a priority for anybody if we win, and that’s how he approaches it. He’s trying to learn the system while doing whatever is necessary to win. We need his scoring, there’s no question, but we need it to come with quality shots and low turnovers.”

Poyser and the rest of the Rebels will have just over two months to figure out the right balance. Menzies expects his team to meet the challenge.

“It’s a different mindset, because now you’re playing for something more tangible in a conference championship,” he said. “The stakes go up and now your concentration and attention to detail has to go up with it. So we’re walking into this thing with our eyes wide open, knowing there’s more at stake and that we have to play accordingly.”

Mountain West picks and predictions

Predicted order of finish

1. UNR

2. San Diego State

3. Boise State

4. Wyoming

5. New Mexico

6. UNLV

7. Colorado State

8. Utah State

9. Fresno State

10. Air Force

11. San Jose State

All-Conference first team

F — Cameron Oliver, UNR

F — Tim Williams, New Mexico

F — Chandler Hutchison, Boise State

G — Jeremy Hemsley, San Diego State

G — Marcus Marshall, UNR

All-Conference second team

F — Zylan Cheatham, San Diego State

F — Tyrell Green, UNLV

G — Elijah Brown, New Mexico

G — Jalen Moore, Utah State

G — Trey Kell, San Diego State

Player of the Year

Cameron Oliver, UNR

Defensive Player of the Year

Cameron Oliver, UNR

Newcomer of the Year

Marcus Marshall, UNR

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