Wolf Pack leaps over Hawaii

Wolf Pack leaps over Hawaii

BY DARRELL MOODY

Appeal Sports Writer

RENO - It was Silver Saturday at Lawlor Events Center, so Nevada coach Mark Fox broke out brand-new silver uniforms for the occasion.

The uniforms looked good, and so did the Wolf Pack.

Nevada shot 65 percent from beyond the arc and 61 percent overall to roll over Hawaii, 88-68, in a nationally televised Western Athletic Conference game.

Nevada improved to 15-8 overall and 7-3 in conference heading into Monday's showdown against conference-leading Utah State, 8-1. Nevada is in fourth place, a half- game behind Boise State and New Mexico State, which are tied at 8-3. Hawaii dropped to 10-12 overall and 6-4 in conference.

Fox said that the uniforms were ordered over the summer from Nike.

"We had planned to wear them for the league opener (against Utah State)," Fox said. "When I heard it was going to be Silver Saturday, I decided to wait for today. The kids have been wanting to wear them."

After Saturday's performance, one would expect the players would want to wear them more.

Besides sinking shots from every angle on the floor, the Pack played solid defense and won the rebounding battle, 33-28.

"We were real focused," said Marcelus Kemp, who finished with a game-high 25 points. "It was a big game for us. We needed to win. We played real hard and got the win."

The first half belonged to Kemp, Brandon Fields and JaVale McGee. The trio combined for 39 of Nevada's 44 points, sparking the Pack to a 44-33 lead at the half.

Kemp had 20 in the first half, going 7-for-9 from the floor, including 4-for-5 from beyond the arc. Fields added 11 of his 17 in the first 20 minutes and McGee scored eight of his 20 in the opening half.

"I got into a good rhythm, and made some shots," Kemp said.

The outburst was no surprise to Fields.

"I see it everyday," Fields said. "He's going to be great at the next level."

Despite the outstanding play of the Nevada trio, no more than five points separated the teams as Hawaii's Bill Amis, who tied his career high with 16 points, scored eight of those in the first portion of the opening half.

Jared Dillinger sliced the early Nevada lead to 22-20 with a 3-pointer with 8:05 left, but Nevada, led by Fields and Kemp, went on 14-6 run to grab a 34-24 advantage with 3 minutes, 8 seconds remaining.

Kemp started the surge with a jump shot and Fields followed with a three-point play when he was shoved while making a layup. After Amis converted a Nevada turnover into a basket, Kemp hit another jump shot to make it 29-22.

Kareem Nitoto dropped in two free throws, but a layup by McGee, who turned in his sixth double-double of the season with 20 points and10 rebounds, and another 3-pointer by Fields made it a 10-point game.

Hawaii got it down to five again with a 7-2 run, but the Pack roared back with an 8-2 surge in the final 1:22, all by Kemp, for the aforementioned 44-33 lead.

"It was a combination of both [bad defense and Kemp's ability]," Hawaii coach Bob Nash said. "He took good shots. He shot the ball extremely well."

"They shot the ball well," Hawaii guard Matt Gibson said. "We had a hand in their face (a lot). All you can do is contest the shot and hope they miss."

For the second straight game, Nevada was able to build on its lead in the second half.

A 13-2 surge, led by McGee, Demarshay Johnson and Fields, boosted Nevada's lead to 58-37 with 11:54 remaining in the game. McGee had five straight points in that run.

Hawaii hurt itself by going 0-for-9 in that stretch and turning the ball over twice.

"Our defense the first 10 minutes of the second half was very good," Fox said.

A 10-4 run late in the second half, which included back-to-back dunks by McGee, gave the Pack its biggest lead of the contest, 73-49, with 6:45 left. When Nash called a timeout, Nevada players were doing chest bumps all over the floor. Stick a fork in the Warriors, they were done.

"We dug a hole that we couldn't get out of," Nash said. "This is not the place to do that. Their size bothered us."

Gibson went 8-for-14 from the floor and challenged the Nevada big men often, and Amis was effective early inside. The other three starters -Dillinger, Bobby Nash and Riley Luettgerodt - were a combined 9-for-26.

The younger Nash went 2-for-10 and finished with just six points, nine below his average.

"He's not shooting well," said Coach Nash. "They paid a little bit of attention. They put Marcelus on him, and he's a little smaller and was able to chase him off screens. When you are a scorer, you have to find different ways to score."

Kemp said that he tried to be physical with Nash and contest every shot. In taking Nash out of the game, Nevada took away one of the Warriors' biggest guns, and it was a key to the Pack's success.

• Contact Darrell Moody at dmoody@nevadaappeal.com, or by calling (775) 881-1281