‘A’ for effort: Hard-playing Rebels knock off Utah State

By Mike Grimala (contact)

Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2020 | 10:34 p.m.

T.J. Otzelberger has spent much of the season trying to get his UNLV basketball players to expend more effort. He wants his team running at full speed, crashing the glass and diving for loose balls, and in the previous two games he was even willing to dole out playing time based on which guys tried the hardest.

That message finally landed in a big way on Wednesday, as the Rebels turned up the intensity and ran visiting Utah State off the floor, 70-53.

It was a stunning upset. Defending league champion Utah State was the preseason pick to repeat, and the Aggies came in with a 13-2 record. But from the opening tip, UNLV was the more physical team and aggressive team on both ends of the floor.

On defense, that effort manifested itself in lockdown pressure on Utah State leading scorer Sam Merrill. UNLV guards Marvin Coleman, Amauri Hardy and Jonah Antonio took turns defending the reigning conference player of the year and limited him to 10 points on 2-of-6 shooting.

On offense, the effort was evident in the paint. UNLV grabbed 14 offensive rebounds and drove inside with enough force to earn 21 free throws.

The Rebels' intensity helped them build a 37-26 advantage at the half, and the lead swelled to as much as 24 points in the second half. Despite the lopsided score, UNLV never throttled down on the hustle.

"Guys came to play today," Hardy said. "We left it all on the line. Guys were diving for loose balls, crashing the offensive boards, on the defensive boards, making it tough for their guys, making them get tough shots at the basket. I think we did a great job of that tonight."

Hardy finished with 14 points, six assists and two steals, and he was undoubtedly one of the team leaders in hitting the floor for loose balls. The junior guard previously lost his starting job due to wavering effort levels, so the fact that he returned to the starting lineup on Wednesday and played 32 intense minutes might be a sign that he gets it now.

Bryce Hamilton, another player who saw his playing time reduced due to low intensity, came off the bench and scored 20 points in 22 minutes. The smooth sophomore made 9-of-11 from the field, including a one-handed breakaway dunk that brought the crowd to its feet in the second half.

After the game, Hardy said he understood why Otzelberger made the lineup changes in the first place and credited the coach for doing the right thing.

"As a coach, that's what you're supposed to do," Hardy said. "He's creating the culture. It's his first year and that's something he wanted to do. Big ups to him — if I was the coach I would have done the same thing. You want to hold players to that standard; you want to hold them accountable.

"It showed tonight," he continued. "Guys playing hard, guys putting it all out there on the floor. We're playing together, having fun and it looks good."

Mbacke Diong dominated inside and posted 10 points, 14 rebounds and four blocks.

UNLV is now 7-8 on the season and 2-0 in Mountain West play, with a great opportunity to improve to 3-0 on Saturday against Air Force.

Otzelberger stressed that the Rebels need to bring back the same intensity against Air Force — and in every game the rest of the way.

"Hopefully they can bottle this up, understand this is not a one-time deal," Otzelberger said. "This is who we are, and now get back to work."

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