UNLV Rebels head coach Kevin Kruger talks with players during the second half of an NCAA basketball game against the Colorado State Rams at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas Saturday, Jan. 14, 2023. From left: Victor Iwuakor (0), Luis Rodriguez (15), and Justin Webster (2)
Published Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2023 | 2 a.m.
Updated Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2023 | 5:56 p.m.
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An old Hollywood axiom posits that 90% of success in life is just showing up. The same may hold true for basketball and spacing — just be where you’re supposed to be, and good things will happen.
It’s something UNLV (12-5 overall, 1-4 Mountain West Conference) has been neglecting recently, and coach Kevin Kruger believes the team’s offensive production has dipped because of it.
In an overtime loss to Colorado State on Saturday, offensive players were often bunched too close together, or out of alignment with the rest of the team. That allowed Colorado State defenders to split the difference and block driving lanes.
UNLV was forced into difficult shots and ended up making just 38.5% from the field.
Kruger said it’s been a recurring issue for a couple weeks now.
“I think that’s one of the reasons we’ve struggled in conference,” Kruger said. “Instead of creating easier shots for each other, sometimes we’re making that shot a little bit harder by bringing [the defender] closer to the guy with the ball.”
Kruger spent a portion of Sunday’s practice putting his players through their paces — literally. The second-year head coach demonstrated how proper spacing forces defenders to make difficult decisions, allowing quick ball-handlers like Keshon Gilbert and E.J. Harkless to attack downhill.
If one person is out of place, those advantages are neutralized.
“That was one of the things we talked about in film,” Kruger said. “When we’ve had success, period, we’ve had good spacing. We’re getting downhill. We’re not wasting dribbles. We’re not allowing teams to get in their shell spots that they practice every day. We’ve got good movement and we’re creating driving lanes for each other.”
The corners are key to spacing. UNLV guard Justin Webster is making 46.7% from 3-point range this season and has been especially deadly from the corner; when he (and other shooters) are in the corner, opponents must commit a defender to him without cheating off.
That shooter has to hold his position deep in the corner, however. If he drifts toward the top of the key — even just a few feet — it allows the defender to creep closer to the ball and closer to the middle of the floor, encroaching on valuable real estate.
Kruger says that essentially allows one defender to cover two players, and it’s a blight on halfcourt offense.
Drifting out of position can be due to fatigue, confusion, or simply an eagerness to be closer to the ball. Whatever the reason, UNLV has been guilty of it lately, and it’s doing the defense a favor.
From Kruger's vantage point, it's been exhausted players spoiling the spacing of late.
“You start to see it when guys get tired,” Kruger said. “It’s just human nature to be five, six feet closer to the next objective, which a lot of times is getting back defensively. So we’re not holding the corners, or we don’t have good spacing on the wings because I think we’re almost leaning toward getting back, leaning toward the defensive side. That’s usually the first thing to go when players get tired.”
Senior wing Luis Rodriguez is another player who thrives in the corners (33.7 3FG%). He understands that being in the right spot will not only lead to more open looks for him, but also for his teammates.
“It’s huge in creating advantages,” Rodriguez said. “It creates offense, it creates movement, it makes the defense work even harder. It makes one defensive player have to guard two, if the spacing is right.”
Like Kruger, Rodriguez thinks UNLV has seen some slippage in that fundamental aspect of the game, most notably against Colorado State.
“Our spacing wasn’t great,” Rodriguez said. “It doesn’t look like a big thing, but it really is, especially getting down to crunch time and needing those plays to win.”
If Kruger’s instructional session wasn’t enough to drive home the point, UNLV will get an up-close look at good spacing today when it travels to take on Utah State (6 p.m., Mountain West Network). The Aggies are No. 1 in the nation in 3-point accuracy (42.6%), and their shooters are always perfectly stationed away from the ball.
UNLV defenders won’t be able to cheat off shooters because they make such a high percentage of shots, and Utah State isn’t going to help them out by drifting toward the ball. It will be a master class in spacing.
“Utah State does an unbelievable job of spacing,” Kruger said. “The corners are always filled. They do a great job, obviously. They’re one of the top assist teams in the country, and they’re the No. 1 shooting team in the country. You can’t get to those levels percentagewise if you don’t have good spacing.”
Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.
