Michael McGarvey
A look at the key stretches, players and moments of the Nevada Wolf Pack basketball team's 88-58 victory over the Weber State Wildcats on Wednesday at Lawlor Events Center:
KEY RUN
It wasn't so much a run as it was the Wolf Pack finally deciding to break a sweat. The Pack came out bored, disinterested and, well, without an ounce of fear facing a team they beat 72-55 exactly 11 months ago on the same Lawlor Events Center floor. The Pack had an uncomfortable 25-24 lead with a little over four minutes to play in the first half. That's when everyone in silver and blue remembered that a loss to a mediocre Big Sky Conference team at home does nothing for your NCAA Tournament profile. The Pack, now 3-0, then obliterated the Wildcats for the next 11 minutes (the last four in the first half and first seven of the second half), outscoring Weber State 40-12 to take a game-over 65-36 lead before going back to being bored and disinterested over the final 13 minutes.
KEY EMERGENCE
Xavier DuSell, who came to the Pack from Fresno State in the offseason, had a quiet and uneventful first two games of the season. He went a combined 2-for-11 from the floor for seven points in the wins over Sam Houston and Washington. He looked like a guy who had to keep checking his jersey to see what team he was now playing for, which was perfectly understandable since he was now on his third team (Wyoming, Fresno State, Nevada) since March of 2023. DuSell showed on Wednesday why the Pack plucked him out of the transfer portal, scoring a game-high 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting (5-of-7 on threes) in just 25 minutes. He got hot when the Pack finally got hot, hitting his first three for a 28-24 lead with four minutes left in the first half. All five of his threes came in the game-deciding 11-minute run overlapping the first and second halves. His first and last 3-pointers, in fact, started and ended the run.
KEY WEBER WEAKNESS
Don't let Weber State's respectable 43 percent shooting overall and 36 percent on 3's over its first three games (1-2 record) fool you. The bulk of those numbers came against something called Northwest Indian College (Division II) in a 118-35 season-opening win. In its last two games against Division I teams (Oregon State, Nevada), the Wildcats have shot 32-of-105 (30 percent) overall and a sad 10-of-45 (22 percent) on threes. Oregon State and the Pack, by the way, combined to outscore the Wildcats, 164-106. The Wolf Pack held the Wildcats to 15-of-54 (28 percent) shooting from the floor and 3-of-20 (15 percent) on threes. Weber State missed all four of its threes during the Pack's extended 40-12 run overlapping the first and second halves.
KEY HIDDEN STAT
The Pack, at times, might have looked bored and disinterested on offense. But they gave a solid effort on defense for much of the 40 minutes. The Pack separated itself from the Big Sky Wildcats on the defensive end. We already have detailed Weber's shooting woes. But they were also probably a little gun-shy. The Pack defense forced Weber to turn the ball over 11 times and also blocked five shots and had seven steals. Weber State, by comparison, had no blocks or steals and forced the Pack into just five turnovers.
KEY COACHING PHILOSOPHY
Pack coach Steve Alford made sure his starters (Kobe Sanders, Nick Davidson, Tre Coleman, Xavier DuSell, Brandon Love) received extended minutes and found their rhythm to open the season in the first two games. All played 22-plus minutes in both games with three (Sanders, Coleman, Davidson) each paying 30-plus in both games. It was obvious on Wednesday, though, that Alford was going to use the Weber State game as a way to get his bench and his struggling players (DuSell) some confidence. Only Davidson (30 minutes) had more than 27 minutes among the starters. Alford gave veteran K.J. Hymes (he's in his seventh year on the team) what looked like a service-award start in place of Love. Hymes didn't even start the second half after the Pack muddled through the bulk of the first 20 minutes. Alford then gave 20 minutes each to Justin McBride and Love as well as 18 to Tyler Rolison and 15 to Chuck Bailey off the bench. McBride and Bailey played just 18 minutes combined against Sam Houston and 14 against Washington.
KEY CONCERN
Remember we told you the Pack was disinterested and bored for much of the game? Well, Weber State out-rebounded the Wolf Pack 37-31 and clearly out-worked the Pack on the boards. Weber also had an alarming 16 offensive rebounds, in case you need further proof of the Pack's apathy on Wednesday. The Pack, mainly because they made 29-of-51 shots (57 percent), had just six offensive rebounds. Nobody on the Pack, though, had more than six rebounds (Hymes in 17 foul-filled minutes), a disturbing stat considering Weber State shot just 15-of-54 (28 percent).
KEY MINDSET
Kobe Sanders, who led the Pack with 47 points in 70 minutes in the first two games combined, seemed content to be a facilitator and a role player on Wednesday, taking a much-needed breather. The 6-6 Sanders, a transfer portal purchase from Cal Poly, was still valuable against Weber State with 11 points (4-of-8 from the field and 2-of-2 on threes), six assists, two rebounds and a steal in 29 minutes. He had six points in the first half and five in the first five minutes of the second half before slipping into the background the rest of the game (though he still handed out four assists). He didn't even see the floor the last four minutes.
KEY NEWCOMERS
Sophomore Chuck Bailey, from Evansville; senior Brandon Love, from Texas State; and sophomore Justin McBride, from Oklahoma State; all stood out against Weber State in just their third games for the Pack. McBride was outstanding with 16 points and three rebounds in 20 minutes. Love, too, was a bundle of energy in his 20 minutes with eight points, three blocks, four rebounds and five fouls. Bailey had seven points, three rebounds, a block and a steal in 15 productive minutes. This Pack bench, which also includes returners Tyler Rolison, Hymes and Daniel Foster, is as deep and talented as any at Nevada in recent years.
KEY HISTORICAL NOTE
The Wolf Pack has a long history with Weber State. The rivalry began on Dec. 3, 1962, with a 78-62 Pack win at home to open the season and the two schools were both in the Big Sky Conference from 1979-80 through 1991-92. It was while in the Big Sky that Weber State became a pain to the Pack and a source of frustration. The Wildcats beat the Pack in the Big Sky Tournament three consecutive years (1988-90) while Len Stevens was Pack coach. Stevens did finally beat Weber in the postseason in 1992 in the Pack's final year in the Big Sky. The Pack now leads the rivalry, 22-20. The Pack has won 11 of the last 14 meetings, a streak that began immediately after Weber's third win in three years over the Pack in the Big Sky Tournament in 1990.
UP NEXT
The Wolf Pack (3-0) will host Santa Clara (1-2) on Saturday at Lawlor Events Center before heading to the Shriner's Children Classic in Charleston, S.C., for three games from Nov. 21-24.