Rebels get defensive as Otzelberger earns first win at UNLV

By Mike Grimala (contact)

Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2019 | 10:13 p.m.

Tuesday night’s season opener for UNLV was billed as the grand unveiling of T.J. Otzelberger’s modern offense, but it was the Rebels’ defensive performance that stole the show in an 86-71 win over Purdue Fort Wayne.

The defense spurred a 25-4 run late in the first half to help UNLV open a 39-23 lead at the break, and the Rebels cruised through the second half to secure Otzelberger’s first win with the program.

During the big run, UNLV held Purdue Fort Wayne to 2-of-20 from the field over an 11-minute span. The Rebels went from trailing by 3 to leading by 18 during the stretch, and Purdue Fort Wayne finished the first half shooting just 29.4 percent.

Junior center Mbacke Diong, who established himself as the early favorite to win the “Top Stopper” belt by blocking four shots on the night and pulling down 17 rebounds (11 defensive), said the team’s intensity was the key to their defense.

“We were just bringing the energy,” Diong said. “Everybody was active. Active hands. The guards like Jonah [Antonio], Amauri [Hardy], Eli [Mitrou-Long] and Donnie [Tillman] did a great job of guarding their man so we got a lot of turnovers and kept the pace. Energy, man.”

Diong also produced on the offensive end, scoring 17 points in 33 minutes. That tied him with Antonio as the Rebels’ leading scorer, as the junior guard nailed 5-of-9 from 3-point range.

Antonio said Otzlberger’s defensive message throughout the game was simple to understand and apply.

“Just play hard,” Antonio said. “That’s all he wants us to do. Give maximum effort every time we’re out there and it will pay off.”

On the offensive end of the floor, UNLV battled through some choppy stretches and turned in an overall performance that was efficient enough to blow out a team of Purdue Fort Wayne’s caliber. The Rebels shot 51.9 percent for the game and made 23-of-28 free throws, but aside from Antonio’s hot hand, the rest of the team was just 2-of-10 from 3-point range.

Tillman battled his way to the free throw line (10-of-12) to finish with 16 points, and Hardy chipped in 15 points and six assists. Mitrou-Long tallied 11 points to put all five UNLV starters in double figures.

Otzelberger said the Rebels’ defense has been ahead of the offense in practice and that the team can still get better on that end of the floor.

“I think our guys established in that first half who we can be defensively when we pressure the basketball, when we really guard and contest the 3-point line — which [Purdue Fort Wayne was] 1-for-14 at half — and we do a great job on the glass. I think that first half is indicative of who we can be.”

Otzelberger notches first win

The 41-year old Otzelberger showed a bit more emotion than usual when asked for his reaction to picking up his first win as UNLV head coach.

“It feels great,” he said. “This job, I’m humble every day to be fortunate to have a position like this. I work like it’s the greatest job on earth and I believe that it is. It’s thrilling. I’ve followed this program for a number of years and couldn’t be more excited.”

Otzelberger went 70-33 in his three years at South Dakota State, but despite racking up those wins he said he doesn’t have any kind of post-victory routine.

Otzelberger said he’d most likely head home to huddle with his wife, former WNBA player Alison Lacey.

“We usually wind down together,” Otzelberger said. “She was a heck of a player. I’m sure she’ll have a couple things that she can add that she might think we need to look at. But I’m a pretty boring person. We’ll get through this one quick and I’ll probably be watching some Kansas State film here in a hurry.”

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