UNLV Rebels guard EJ Harkless (55) takes the ball upcourt past Wyoming Cowboys guard Xavier DuSell (53) during the first half of an NCAA basketball game at the Thomas & Mack Center Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2023.
Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2023 | 10:56 p.m.
When things were going well for the UNLV basketball team this season, the Scarlet and Gray followed a defined blueprint for winning games: They switched every screen on defense, they forced turnovers by the dozen, and on offense they scratched and clawed for every ugly point.
Then, it stopped working and UNLV got battered in the early stages of conference play, losing six of seven Mountain West contests.
So the blueprint went out the window Tuesday, as head coach Kevin Kruger adjusted the game plan and steered his team to an 86-72 victory over Wyoming at the Thomas & Mack Center.
The win brings an end to the team’s spirit-sapping four-game losing streak and keeps UNLV (13-7, 2-6 MWC) from occupying last place in the Mountain West standings.
Credit Kruger for changing things up. Instead of switching on every screen, big men Victor Iwuakor and Keyshawn Hall dropped underneath picks and maintained their original matchups. While it resulted in UNLV generating a season-low six turnovers, it also led to fewer isolation situations for the bigs and helped limit Wyoming to 40.7% from the field.
It was a wrinkle Kruger and his staff implemented over the last two days of practice, and though there were a few miscues sprinkled in — to be expected when making a change at this point in the season — Kruger liked what he saw on that end of the floor.
“I thought the guys did a really good job of it,” Kruger said. “Guys did a much better job of keeping the ball in front and guarding it and not allowing as many kick-out 3’s as we’ve been giving up.”
Kruger singled out Iwaukor for his ability to defend the pick-and-roll while adapting to the new defensive scheme. The senior finished with five points, four rebounds and two blocks, and UNLV outscored Wyoming by 18 points in the 24 minutes he was on the floor, giving him the best plus/minus rating on the team.
Wyoming center Hunter Thompson, who has been a matchup problem for UNLV in the past due to his ability to shoot from beyond the arc, was limited to nine points on 2-of-4 shooting.
At the other end, UNLV enjoyed a surprisingly efficient scoring outing. The Scarlet and Gray shot 53.7%, led by E.J. Harkless’ 28 points on 8-of-15 FGs.
Kruger went off-script in another key aspect. While he has clung to a very tight rotation for most of the year, he explored the team’s depth chart Tuesday and was rewarded with 28 bench points.
Senior guard Jordan McCabe led the way with 12 points in 22 minutes off the bench, and freshman Hall continued his impressive play with 10 points in 13 minutes on 4-of-4 shooting.
Even seldom-used sophomore wing Shane Nowell got in on the action, splashing a pair of 3-pointers and grabbing four rebounds in 18 productive minutes.
Kruger said he was looking to find a hot hand off the bench.
“Sometimes, it’s just about cycling guys through in shorter stretches and letting them go out there and play hard and get lost in the game,” Kruger said.
The next test for UNLV will be executing its new plan against a quality opponent. Beating Wyoming is one thing, but hosting UNR (16-5, 6-2 MWC) on Saturday is going to take an even better performance.
McCabe said he and his teammates are committed to making the new defense work.
“The biggest adjustment was keep the ball in front,” McCabe said. “We’re definitely still not where we need to be. We recognize that. But we made an adjustment this week, and now, it’s about shoring up some of those mistakes that we’ll see on film.”
