Arkansas-Pine Bluff at Nevada
December 17, 2008
Game Notes:
- With the 87-58 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Wednesday night, Nevada improved to 6-4 on the year and 4-2 at home on the season. The Wolf Pack is on its first three-game winning streak of the year and wrapped up its season-long four-game homestand.
- Nevada won for the 16th time in its last 20 home games and is now 77-11 at Lawlor Events Center since the start of the 2003-04 season.
- Junior Brandon Fields scored a game- and season-high 21 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field and 7-of-7 from the free throw line.
- Fields led four Wolf Pack players in double figures for scoring. Sophomore Armon Johnson turned in 17 points, while freshman Luke Babbitt added 11 and sophomore Malik Cooke had 10.
- Fields also added a team-best eight rebounds, his season best and just one board off his career high, and had two assists and a season-high two steals.
- The Wolf Pack held the Golden Lions to 58 points, the third consecutive game the team has held its opponent under 60 points. Nevada has held its last three opponents to just 48.3 points per game.
- Freshman London Giles turned in the best game of his young career so far, scoring a career-best eight points on 3-of-4 shooting, including a pair of three-pointers.
- Sophomore Armon Johnson turned in a game-high seven assists with no turnovers.
- Nevada tied its season high with 12 steals with five players turning in two steals apiece (Luke Babbitt, Armon Johnson, Brandon Fields, London Giles and Richie Phillips). For Giles and Phillips, the two steals marked career highs.
- Nevada returns to action on Saturday, traveling to Berkeley, Calif., to take on the California Golden Bears. Saturday’s game at Cal’s Haas Pavilion will tip off at 3:06 p.m. Pacific and will be televised locally by KAME-TV 21 and regionally on Comcast Sports Net Bay Area Plus. It can also be heard on Nevada’s radio flagship, ESPN 630 AM, and its radio affiliates throughout the state.
Nevada Quotes
Nevada guard Armon Johnson
On the game:
“I’m happy to get a victory, especially with finals over. I think we defended pretty well and shot the ball well at times.”
On the team’s performance:
“It’s good because we are playing better and more aggressive defense. I think it’s going good for us. I like to get up and down.”
On upcoming game against California:
“Cal is a good team. We don’t know much about them yet, but they are a pretty good team.”
On going back on the road after four home games:
“I think it will be good for us to get out on the road before conference. We just need to pull out victories.”
Nevada guard Brandon Fields
On his performance:
“It was my shot and rhythm. I just took my shots and we played team ball. It’s nice to have my team supporting me telling me to shoot the ball and be aggressive.”
Nevada guard London Giles
On his performance:
“I think I played well. I think I can play better. We’re just happy to get a win.”
On the team’s performance:
“It’s a process, but I think it’s coming along pretty well. We are making progress at practice.”
Nevada Head Coach Mark Fox:
On his team’s performance:
“I really thought it looked like a final exam game. Early we looked lethargic mentally. I thought we were sloppy and sluggish in a lot of ways. Fortunately, we played a team that’s been on the road forever and it’s a win.”
“I think we didn’t defend really well at all to be honest. I don’t care what the defensive stats say. We were fortunate to have some chances to extend our defense. We forced some turnovers, but I didn’t think we were as efficient as we should be.”
On the play of London Giles:
“I thought he had a really good stretch and got really tired. He’s confident and aggressive and I thought he got really tired. He’s a really talented kid. It’s really good to see him make a few baskets.”
On the fast break:
“I didn’t think our break was good tonight. I thought our break was better Sunday. We had a lot of spectacular nothing. We did get on the break, which is good. We need to play as fast as we can play well.”
On Brandon Fields:
“He was aggressive tonight. He got the ball to the basket. He got some easy ones. He had a productive night. He got to the line. We were disappointed in his rebounding on Sunday and he rebounded the well tonight. He played real well tonight. It was good to see.”
