Exhibition game presents an early opportunity for new-look Rebels

By Mike Grimala (contact)

Friday, Nov. 3, 2017 | 2 a.m.

The UNLV basketball team has set a goal of making the NCAA tournament this season (which would end a four-year drought), and while today’s exhibition against Alaska Fairbanks at the Thomas & Mack Center ultimately won’t factor into that equation, the Runnin’ Rebels appear to be taking it as seriously as a one-and-done game that could punch their ticket to the big dance.

For the seven newcomers on the roster, today is their first chance to make an impression against a real team in front of the hometown fans.

For senior guard Jovan Mooring, one of the players who endured last season’s 11-21 campaign, it represents the first step toward the postseason — and an opportunity to begin wiping away unpleasant memories of the 2016-17 rebuilding season.

Before an open practice on Wednesday, Mooring sounded like a man who was ready to take the court.

“We’ve been waiting for a long time, so I think we’re all excited,” Mooring said. “I can’t wait to get out there, personally, but I think all the guys are excited for it.”

Include head coach Marvin Menzies in the group of Rebels who can’t wait for the season to begin. UNLV will be counting on several key freshmen this season, and Menzies wants to get them used to the gameday routine as quickly as possible.

“We take a game like this seriously in our preparation because of the opportunity to play in front of our fans for the first time,” Menzies said. “And also the young guys, to give them kind of a glimpse of the routine we’ll go through from a scouting perspective with the scouting reports, the film, the routine, everything that goes into planning for a game.”

Freshman center Brandon McCoy was the biggest offseason addition for the Rebels, but he may not play in the exhibition due to a minor ankle injury. McCoy didn’t practice on Wednesday, and Menzies said the big man will likely be a game-time decision.

Freshman guard Amauri Hardy is also expected to contribute big minutes this season, and freshman forward Mbacke Diong is an intriguing prospect. Menzies wants to use the exhibition to gauge how they respond to the mental aspect of the game.

“That’s one of the things you can identify [in an exhibition],” Menzies said. “Who picks up quickly? Typically, freshmen obviously take a little longer to do that stuff, but then you have some freshmen a little more mature than others and come from different types of programs, so that’s what we get to find out — who’s good at getting this information, retaining it and getting the carryover onto the floor? I think that preparation is something we can evaluate in our younger guys to see who does a good job.”

Menzies also wants his team to treat this preseason game against a Division-II opponent as a chance to get a win. While exhibition results are technically meaningless, Menzies wants to instill his players with a competitive mindset.

To that end, Menzies is already playing it coy with his lineup decisions. When asked if the exhibition would be a good time to get all of his players some floor time for evaluation purposes, he wasn’t willing to commit to any minutes that haven’t been earned.

“You always want to see everyone play,” Menzies said, “but at the end of the day there’s only so many opportunities to vet the substitution pattern and what it’s going to end up being. Obviously at this point in the season, having not played one game, we’re going to try to get guys opportunities, but a lot of that is determined in practice.”

With Menzies coaching to win and the players following suit, the Rebels should be able to sew up a fairly drama-free victory over Alaska Fairbanks. Then the team will have another eight days to prepare for the regular-season opener against Florida A&M.

Five months from now on Selection Sunday, the exhibition will either be rendered meaningless, or it will be remembered as the start of something big.

Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.