Nevada loses its way in San Jose

SAN JOSE, Calif. - It didn't take Nevada basketball coach Mark Fox long to pinpoint two key reasons for Nevada's most disappointing loss this year and maybe in his three-plus years on the job.

"We didn't rebound the ball very well," Fox said. "I was disappointed with our defensive rebounding, I was disappointed with our free throw shooting. Those are two key areas that in a close game can hurt you dearly.

"Give San Jose State credit. We didn't play well. They played better than we did."

It took a Justin Graham free throw with 12.6 seconds left, and then two Nevada misses in the closing seconds, for the Spartans to pin a 62-60 loss on the Pack before a crowd of 1,446 Thursday night at the Event Center.

The loss snapped a 10-game winning streak against San Jose State. The Spartans hadn't beaten Nevada since a 76-72 victory in Reno on March 2, 2002.

The Spartans enjoyed a 37-33 rebounding edge, converting their 14 offensive rebounds into 10 second-chance points. And, when the Spartans didn't score on a second-chance attempt, they kept possessions alive.

And, Nevada was a horrid 7-for-16 from the line. David Ellis went 4-for-4, but JaVale McGee went 0-for-3, Demarshay Johnson was 1-for-4 and Lyndale Burleson was 0-for-2.

Nevada led 54-49 with 5:50 left, but faltered badly down the stretch, and the Spartans won for the sixth time in a game decided by four points or less.

San Jose State, led by C.J. Webster (17 points, 7 rebounds) went on a 12-2 run to take a 61-56 lead on a Chris Oakes basket with 1:16 remaining.

"I was frustrated by fouls and lack of scoring (recently) and things like that," Webster said.

The Pack wasn't done, however.

McGee, who only played 22 minutes because of foul problems, made a short bank shot and was fouled, but he missed the free throw, leaving Nevada on the short end of a 61-58 score.

Graham missed on the Spartans' next possession, and Kemp hit a floater in the lane with 14.1 to make it 61-60, and Fox took his last timeout.

Fox said that the Pack had plays called for both a two-pointer and 3-pointer, but the Spartans covered the long ball.

"We executed fairly well and they defended well, also," Fox said. "We just ran out of timeouts."

Nevada was forced to foul Graham, and he hit one of two from the line with 12.6 left. Nevada had a chance to win or tie.

Kemp fired up an airball from about 23 feet that landed near the baseline. Brandon Fields caught up with the ball, but Webster got a finger on Fields' return shot, signaling the end of one of the Spartans' biggest victories in recent years.

"I was going to call a timeout when Graham was shooting, but I knew they were out of timeouts," SJSU coach George Nessman said. "Justin flashed out and Marcelus couldn't get a clean look because of that.

"We respect their program to the highest degree. They have been a role model for us. This is a significant step for the team and program."

The Spartans' job also was made simpler by the fact that McGee was limited to 13 second-half minutes after picking up a foul (his third) and a technical (his fourth) when he kicked the ball into the stands. He sat the bench for nearly seven minutes.

It wasn't just the second half that Nevada was unable to get the job done. Nevada played a poor first half, leaving the floor tied at 26. Neither Fox nor his players were blaming things on the recent 10-day layoff caused by the postponement of the Utah State game.

The Pack turned the ball over nine times, five by Kemp, and shot 10-for-37, including a 1-for-10 stretch in the last 7 1/2 minutes when it managed just an Armon Johnson field goal.

"The defense was like a junk zone," Kemp said. "We were out of rhythm. We didn't start out that good."

"We were out of rhythm," Fox said. "We shot a better percentage in the a second half. We just have to do the little things better."

Kemp struggled from the floor, knocking down just 2-for-9 from the field, and McGee was limited to a single basket in nine minutes, and didn't play after picking up his second foul with 5:23 remaining.

The Pack used a 10-2 run to open up a 22-11 lead, but the Spartans led by DeVonte Thomas (6 points) and Webster (4 points) went on a half-ending 15-4 burst to take a 26-24 lead before Johnson tied it with a lay-up with 5.3 left on the clock.

Armon Johnson and Ellis combined for 13 of Nevada's 26 in the first half, and that was big. Ellis had seven of his eight points in just a seven-minute stretch.

"It got into a possession by possession game," Nessman said. "We were able to hang close and we haven't been able to do that in the past."

Webster said the half-ending run by the Spartans was critical.

"It changed the whole complexion of the game," Webster said. "It let them know we're not going to back down. I think our team was great tonight. We had a couple of breakdowns, but we were able to recover and keep going at it. Our enegry and the crowd's energy really helped us."

This isn't the same Wolf Pack team that Nessman has seen in his third season in San Jose. This is a young team prone to inconsistencies and failures that young teams go through from time to time. This is a team that will look good at times and look bad at times.

Unfortunately, this was one of those games where they couldn't overcome the stretches of bad play.