McGee has strong game vs. Aggies
BY DARRELL MOODY
Appeal Sports Writer
RENO - JaVale McGee was a force at both ends of the floor Monday night against Utah State.
The 7-foot sophomore center scored 12 points, pulled down four rebounds and blocked six shots in the Wolf Pack's 85-80 win over the first-place Aggies at Lawlor Events Center.
Just nine days ago, McGee turned in a double-double against the Aggies with 15 points and 12 rebounds.
In a 20-9 run that enabled Nevada to build a 62-46 lead, McGee scored on a hook, a dunk and layup. In that span, he blocked one shot and forced Tai Wesley into a traveling violation.
"JaVale is still growing," Nevada coach Mark Fox said. "He's learning to become better defensively every day and be more than a shot blocker. But tonight was a physical game and he made some key plays down the end for us."
McGee brought the crowd to its feet in the second half when he stepped into the passing lane and got a steal. Seeing he was going to be unable to get to the rim, he whipped a behind-the-back pass to Marcelus Kemp, who was fouled on the play and made two free throws for a 62-46 lead.
ENOUGH JUICE LEFT?
Nevada takes to the road to Boise State (Thursday) and Idaho (Saturday) to complete its 10-day, five-game stretch.
Seven players played 14 or more minutes, and Fox admits he's worried about whether his team has enough energy left to play hard enough to grab a couple of more wins.
"I'm concerned about how much juice we have in the tank this weekend," he said.
Kemp said he felt all right after playing three home games in the past five days.
"I'm fine," Kemp said. "Coach (Fox) makes us take ice baths, so I'm fresh."
Kemp played 84 minutes in the past three games, an average of 28 per game. He played 33 against the Aggies because the game was in doubt the entire way.
BRACKETBUSTER TIME IS SET
Game times for the O'Reilly/ESPNU BracketBuster on Feb. 22-24 have been announced.
All 14 ESPNU BracketBuster contests will be available nationally with ESPN2 televising six, ESPNU televising five, ESPN360.com offering coverage of two and, for the first time, ESPN Classic televising one.
The Nevada-Southern Illinois game will be shown at 1:30 p.m. local time on Feb. 23 and will be shown on ESPNU.
Utah State hosts UC-Santa Barbara at 6 p.m. on Feb. 22 on ESPN2, and Boise State hosts Siena at 7 p.m. on ESPN 360.
The selections are highlighted by No. 15 Drake (22-1) at No. 10 Butler (21-2), in a showdown between two teams with the best records and highest rankings in event history, and No. 21 Kent State at Saint Mary's (20-3), both on ESPN2 Saturday, Feb. 23, at 2 p.m. PDT and 9 p.m., respectively.
NO QUIT IN AGGIES
Stew Morrill, Utah State head coach, liked the way his team battled throughout the game.
"We lost," he said. "I was pleased we hung in there and didn't give in. It's still a loss."
Morrill has harped about getting road wins as the key to being a contender in the conference.
"We need to learn how to win on the road," said center Gary Wilkinson, who was held to 12 points after scoring 23 in the first meeting between the teams.
Defense and rebounding are keys to road wins. Utah State did win the battle of the boards, but really did little to slow down Nevada's offense in either half.
BENCH PRODUCES
Nevada's bench produced 11 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists and just one turnover.
David Ellis went 4-for-5 from the floor and finished with eight points and five rebounds, while Lyndale Burleson scored three points, grabbed two rebounds, dished out four assists and had two steals. Ray Kraemer had a rebound and two assists in eight minutes, and chased Jaycee Carroll around for a short time. Matt LaGrone had two rebounds and an assist in six minutes.
FACTS & FIGURES
Utah State had been 6-0 this year in games decided six or less points ... Kris Clark tied his career high with 10 assists. He has 306 in his career, good for eighth place ... Carroll has reached double figures in 25 games this year and in 29 straight dating back to last year. He has a school-record 111 double-figure games. He has made a 3-pointer in 46 straight games ... Utah State has shot 560 percent or better in 11 of its last 15 games ... Nevada is now 16-1 when leading at the half and 7-1 when it scores 80 or more points ... The Pack is 7-4 in games decided by 10 points or less ... This is the first time the Pack has won this season when being outshot by its opponent (51 percent to 47 percent) ... Nevada is 4-7 when being outrebounded ... The starting line-up of Armon and Demarshay Johnson, McGee, Kemp and Brandon Fields is 9-6 ... Armon Johnson, who had 11 combined points (4-for-7 from the field) in his previous two games, went for 16 points ... There were six lead changes in the game ... Kemp reached the 30-point barrier for the first time this season and for the fourth time in his career. He has 24 straight double-figure games and 86 in his career ... Fox is 97-26 and just three wins from the 100-win mark in his career ... Nevada's game at Boise State Thursday night will be shown on KAME-TV, but the Saturday game won't be televised ... McGee, who blocked six shots, now has 68 for the season. Edgar Jones has the school record with 96.
• Contact Darrell Moody at dmoody@nevadaappeal.com, or by calling (775) 881-1281