NEVADA WOLF PACK (12-7, 5-1 WAC) at UTAH STATE AGGIES (19-1, 7-0 WAC)
GAME #20
Thurs., Jan. 29, 2009 - 7:05 p.m. MT (6:05 p.m. PT) - Dee Glen Smith Spectrum (10,270) - Logan, Utah
TELEVISION: KAME-TV 21 & Comcast SportsNet California (Rich Cellini & Dave Bollwinkel)
RADIO: University of Nevada Sports Network (ESPN Radio 630 AM, Reno;
KELK 1240 AM, Elko; KHWG 750 AM, Fallon & KSVL 92.3 FM, Yerington)
Ryan Radtke (play-by-play), pregame show starts at 6:30 p.m. MT (5:30 p.m. PT)
SERIES HISTORY: Utah State leads the series 25-12.
LAST MEETING: Nevada won the last meeting between the two teams, turning in an 85-80 win over Utah State on Feb. 11, 2008 in Reno, Nev.
Coming off a 74-63 win over Hawai’i last Thursday, the five-time defending Western Athletic Conference champion Nevada Wolf Pack (12-7, 5-1 WAC) heads out on the road this week, traveling to Logan, Utah, on Thursday night to take on the Utah State Aggies (19-1, 7-0 WAC). Thursday’s game will tip off at 7:05 p.m. Mountain Time (6:05 p.m. Pacific Time) at Utah State’s Dee Glen Smith Spectrum. The game will be televised locally by KAME-TV 21 and regionally by Comcast SportsNet California and also can be heard on Nevada’s radio flagship, ESPN 630 AM, and affiliates throughout the state with Ryan Radtke calling the action. The Wolf Pack brings a season-long five-game winning streak into Thursday’s game, all in conference play. Nevada ranks second in the WAC standings with a 5-1 record, while Utah State is leading the WAC at 7-0. Following Thursday’s game with the Aggies, Nevada travels to Moscow, Idaho, to take on the Idaho Vandals (9-10, 3-3) on Saturday, Jan. 31.
Under the direction of fifth-year head coach Mark Fox, the Wolf Pack returned two starters and a total of seven letterwinners from last year’s 21-12 team, including the coaches’ preseason WAC Player of the Year Armon Johnson who started 32 of 33 games last season as a true freshman. This year’s team also features five new faces (a junior college transfer and four true freshmen). Last season, Nevada turned in its fifth consecutive year with at least 20 wins, won its fifth straight WAC regular-season title and earned the team’s six consecutive postseason appearance with an invitation to the inaugural College Basketball Invitational.
ON THE ROAD
Nevada has won 31 of its last 49 games away from the friendly confines of Lawlor Events Center, including 26 road wins and five neutral-site victories (dating back to midway through the 2005-06 season). In 2006-07, the team turned in a 14-4 record away from home, including a 10-2 road mark and a 4-2 record in neutral-site games. The Wolf Pack has won 14 of its last 26 regular-season road contests and 25 of its last 38 and turned in a 7-9 road mark last season (4-3 this year). In 2006-07, the team saw an 11-game regular-season road winning streak snapped with a Jan. 20, 2007 loss at New Mexico State. Prior to that, the team had not dropped a road contest since falling at Fresno State on Jan. 18, 2006.
In the last five seasons since the start of the 2004-05 campaign, the Wolf Pack has tallied a 42-19 record in road contests (.689 winning percentage). That includes a 28-8 record in WAC road games (.778).
ABOUT THE UTAH STATE AGGIES
Utah State brings a 19-1 overall record into Thursday’s game with Nevada and has won its last 14 games, the second-longest winning streak in the nation. Under the direction of 11th-year head coach Stew Morrill (256-87 record at USU), the Aggies are first in the WAC standings with a 7-0 mark this year and have won their last 28 home games at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum (11-0 this season). Last week, Utah State won a pair of road games, downing San Jose State 62-58 on Jan. 22 and Hawai’i 67-51 on Jan. 24. The Aggies returned three starters and six letterwinners from last year’s 24-11 NIT team and finished in a four-way tie for first in the WAC with a 12-4 league mark one season ago.
Senior forward Gary Wilkinson (6-9, 240) is leading four Aggies in double figures for scoring and tied for second in the WAC with 17.0 points per game. He also checks in at fourth in the league in rebounding with 7.5 boards per contest and in field goal percentage at 59.3 percent (17th in the nation). Junior guard Jared Quayle (6-1, 180), a transfer from Western Wyoming CC, is second on the team with 12.6 points per game. As a team, Utah State leads the nation in field goal percentage at 50.7 percent. The Aggies are second in the WAC in scoring with 72.7 points per game and first in scoring defense, allowing opponents just 59.4 points per contest.
IN THE SERIES
Utah State holds a 25-12 advantage in the all-time series between the two former members of the Big West Conference. Nevada won the last meeting between the two teams, turning in an 85-80 win on Feb. 11, 2008 in Reno. That victory snapped Utah State’s three-game winning streak in the series, which included a 77-63 victory on Feb. 2, 2008 in Logan, Utah, in last year’s first matchup. Utah State has won nine of the last 10 meetings at its own Dee Glen Smith Spectrum with the lone Nevada road win in that stretch coming in the form of a 75-57 victory on Feb. 25, 2006 in Logan, Utah.
LAST TIME OUT
Junior Brandon Fields and freshman Luke Babbitt each scored 19 points as Nevada turned back Hawai’i 74-63 Thursday, Jan. 22 at Lawlor Events Center.
Winners of five games in a row, Nevada also got 12 points, 10 rebounds and four steals from sophomore Malik Cooke for his first career double-double.
Hawai’i, which has lost four games in a row, got 14 points from Kareem Nitoto, 12 from Roderick Flemings and 10 from Petras Balocka.
Nevada led the entire game, but Hawai’i pulled within 52-46 with just under eight minutes to play on a 3-pointer by Nitoto. Lasha Parghalava hit a 3-pointer to cut Nevada's lead to 65-57 with three minutes to play.
But the Wolf Pack went up 65-52 with 3:45 to play on a jumper in the lane by sophomore Armon Johnson. Babbitt scored inside and hit a free throw for a 3-point play and a 68-57 lead with 2:32 to go. Fields threw down a dunk off a feed from Babbitt for a 70-59 lead with a minute to play.
Nevada, which led 37-20 at halftime, jumped out to an 8-0 lead in the first two minutes as Babbitt hit a pair of 3-pointers on a short jumper. Hawai’i turned the ball over four times in its first six possessions.
Johnson drained a 3-pointer and Cooke scored inside as Nevada built a 15-4 lead with 14:35 to go in the first half. Hawaii, though, cut Nevada's lead to 19-13 after a jumper by Bill Amis with nine minutes to play in the half.
Junior Ray Kraemer came off the bench for Nevada to score seven points in just three minutes. A 3-pointer by Kraemer gave Nevada a 37-18 lead with 1:45 to go in the half.
Hawaii shot just 30 percent (6-for-20) in the opening half and turned the ball over 14 times.
BABBITT OPENS ROOKIE CAMPAIGN STRONG
Winner of two WAC Player-of-the-Week awards this season, freshman Luke Babbitt has opened his first season in the Silver and Blue in strong fashion, leading the team in scoring and rebounding. With a career-high 22 points Dec. 31 vs. North Carolina, Jan. 8 at New Mexico State and again Jan. 17 vs. Fresno State, he has regained the team scoring lead. The McDonald’s High School All-American is averaging 15.9 points per game and ranks fifth in the WAC and tied for fifth among the nation’s freshmen in scoring. Babbitt is also leading the Pack in both categories in conference play (16.8 ppg, 4th in the WAC and 8.8 rpg, 2nd in the WAC).
He has turned five 20-point games this season, surpassing a pair of 20-point efforts (at Montana State and vs. Oregon State) with his three 22-point efforts, and has led the team in scoring in 10 of 19 games, including five of the last eight. He has been in double figures for scoring in all but two contests this year, most recently adding 19 Jan. 22 vs. Hawai’i, and hit the game-winning three-pointer as time expired for 15 points in the Jan. 10 win at Louisiana Tech.
Babbitt checks in at third in the WAC with 7.7 rebounds per contest. He has led the Wolf Pack in rebounding 11 times this season (including four of the last five games), most recently pulling down a career-best 13 boards Jan. 17 vs. Fresno State. He turned in his first career double-double in his collegiate debut, tallying 20 points and a career-high 12 rebounds Nov. 15 at Montana State. He has a team-leading four double-doubles this season, most recently turning in 22 points and 13 rebounds Jan. 17 vs. Fresno State.
Babbitt has a chance to become the first Wolf Pack freshman to lead the team in scoring since Terrance Green paced the squad with 13.9 points per game in 1999-2000. He could also become the first freshman to pace the Wolf Pack in rebounding since Nick Fazekas averaged 7.6 boards per game in 2003-04. Since 1972-73, Nevada has never had a freshman lead the team in both categories, while the Wolf Pack has had just two rookies lead the team in scoring (Green & Edgar Jones in 1975-75) and two pace the squad in rebounding (Fazekas and Pete Padgett in 1972-73) in that span.
NATION’S TOP FRESHMEN SCORERS IN 2008-09
Name, School PPG
1. Seth Curry, Liberty 20.7
2. Sylven Landesberg, Virginia 17.1
3. Tyreke Evans, Memphis 16.6
4. Mike Rosario, Rutgers 17.2
5. Luke Babbitt, Nevada 15.9
Keith Gabriel, VMI 15.9
7. Afam Muojeke, Wyoming 15.5
8. Paul George, Fresno State 15.4
9. Willie Warren, Oklahoma 15.1
10. Courtney Fortson, Arkansas 14.5
11. Samardo Samuels, Louisville 13.3
12. Alex Young, IUPUI 12.6
WIPING THE GLASS
The Wolf Pack has outrebounded each of its last eight opponents, including a 35-28 advantage Jan. 22 vs. Hawai’i. Nevada is now 9-3 on the year when outrebounding its opponents. On Jan. 8 at New Mexico State, Nevada was down 27-17 in the rebounding battle at the half but outboardedthe Aggies 34-16 in the final 25 minutes on Jan. 8 (51-43 in the game). The 51 rebounds were one shy of the team's season high of 52 Dec. 9 vs. Sonoma State. In addition to a team-leading and career high-tying 12 rebounds from freshman Luke Babbitt, sophomore Malik Cooke and junior Joey Shaw each tied their career bests with 10 and eight rebounds, respectively, Jan. 8 vs. the Aggies.
As a team, Nevada leads the WAC in rebounding offense with 38.0 boards per game and ranks second in offensive rebounding with 12.47 offensive boards per contest. In WAC games, Nevada is also pulling down a league-best 41.3 rebounds per game.
Freshman Luke Babbitt is the team’s top rebounder, checking in at third in the WAC with 7.7 boards per game. He pulled down a career-high 13 rebounds Jan. 17 vs. Fresno State and has tallied 12 in two other games this year (at Montana State and at New Mexico State). Sophomore Malik Cooke ranks second on the team and 11th in the WAC with 6.4 rebounds per contest, while Cooke is Nevada’s best offensive rebounder this season, checking in at second in the WAC with 3.05 offensive rebounds per game this year. Cooke turned in his first career double-double with 12 points and a career-best 10 rebounds Jan. 22 vs. Hawai’i and has matched his career best with 10 rebounds two other times this season.
SUCCESS AT THE CHARITY STRIPE
Nevada ranks third in the WAC and 46th in the nation in free throw percentage this season, knocking down 73.1 percent of its attempts from the line (350-479). Nevada made a season-high 87.5 percent of its free throws in its Dec. 14 win over Southern Illinois (21-24), besting its previous high of 87.1 percent Dec. 9 vs. Sonoma State (27-31). The team has been over 80 percent at the line three times this year, most recently knocking down 81.3 percent of its attempts Jan. 22 vs. Hawai’i (26-32).
Freshman Luke Babbitt is shooting 82.0 percent from the line (82-100) to rank fourth in the WAC, including all eight of his attempts Dec. 14 vs. Southern Illinois and Dec. 27 vs. Idaho State. Junior Ray Kraemer has made 21-of-22 of his free throw attempts on the year (.955) and would lead the WAC, while junior Joey Shaw is shooting 78.0 percent (32-41) which would rank eighth, but both players fall short of the league’s 2.0 minimum per game. Sophomore Armon Johnson checks in at ninth in the WAC at 75.6 percent (68-90).
GETTING DEFENSIVE
Including four games this year (4-0 record), Nevada has won 56 of its last 58 games when holding its opponent to 60 points or less, including a 13-1 record in 2005-06, a 6-1 mark in 2006-07 and a 6-0 record in 2007-08. As a team, Nevada leads the WAC in field goal percentage defense and is third in scoring defense, allowing its opponents to shoot 41.1 percent from the field and score 65.0 points per game.
Nevada held Sonoma State to a season-low 39 points on Dec. 9, while Southern Illinois came into its Dec. 14 game with the Wolf Pack ranked 14th in the nation in three-point percentage at 42.1 percent but was held to just 26.7 percent (4-15). New Mexico State came into the Jan. 8 game ranked first in the WAC and seventh in the nation in three-point shooting at 41.0 percent but was held to just 12.5 percent by the Wolf Pack (1-8).
FOX RETURNS FOR FIFTH SEASON
With Nevada’s 74-63 win over Hawai’i on Jan. 22, Nevada head coach Mark Fox moved into a tie for third on the Wolf Pack’s all-time wins list with Sonny Allen (114-89 record in seven seasons from 1980-87). Fox holds a 114-37 career record in his five seasons at the helm of the Wolf Pack program (.755 winning percentage). He is the first coach in school history to lead his squad to four consecutive 20-win seasons and three NCAA Tournament appearances, while his winning percentage ranks first among all of Nevada’s head coaches.
Nevada’s March 1, 2008 victory over Louisiana Tech gave Fox the 100th win of his career. He tied for 21st on the NCAA's list of fastest coaches to reach 100 wins (among coaches with at least half of their seasons at the Division I level). Duke's Vic Bubas also took 128 wins to reach the milestone, doing it in his fifth season (1964). Fox also became the fastest coach in school history to reach the 100-win plateau. It took Jake Lawlor, the winningest coach in school history, seven seasons (10th game into that season) and 168 games to hit that milestone, while Sonny Allen reached the mark in the first game of his seventh season (100 wins in 174 games). Nevada has seen three of its previous head coaches notch at least 100 wins, including Lawlor (201-159 career record), Allen (114-89) and Jack Spencer (123-199).
Fox’s 81 wins after his first three seasons were tied with Gonzaga's Mark Few for the most victories in Division I history by a coach through three seasons (81-18 record in his first three seasons). Fox was named the Don Haskins Coach of the Year in each of his first three seasons as Nevada’s head coach to become the first coach in WAC history to earn the honor in three consecutive years. He was also one of 15 finalists for the 2007 Jim Phelan National Coach of the Year Award and was named the 2007 National Association of Basketball Coaches District 13 Coach of the Year.
NEVADA’S WINNINGEST COACHES (by wins)
Name (Years) Career Record (Win. Pct.)
1. Jake Lawlor (1942-43, 45-49) 201-159 (.558)
2. Jack Spencer (1959-72) 123-199 (.382)
3. Mark Fox (2004-pres.) 114-37 (.755)
Sonny Allen (1980-87) 114-89 (.562)
5. Len Stevens (1987-93) 91-79 (.535)
6. Pat Foster (1993-99) 90-81 (.526)
JOHNSON TURNS IT ON
Sophomore Armon Johnson is now second on the team and ninth in the WAC with 14.3 points per contest. The preseason WAC Player of the Year has paced the team in scoring five times this year, including 25 points in a Jan. 15 win over Boise State and a career-high 33 points on Dec. 20 at California. In the last 14 games, Johnson has turned in 15.8 points per game (221 points).
Johnson has had a knack for big second halves this year, including 27 of his career-high 33 points in the second half at Cal, 14 of 20 in the second half and overtime Jan. 8 at New Mexico State and 16 of 25 in the final 20 minutes Jan. 15 vs. Boise State. Against the Bears, he scored Nevada's first seven points of the half and 13 of its last 15 in the game. Johnson also scored 13 of his points in the second half Dec. 31 vs. top-ranked North Carolina, 14 of his 23 points in the second half Dec. 2 at Colorado State and 14 of 16 in the final 20 minutes Dec. 14 vs. Southern Illinois.
Johnson is also leading the team in assists for the second year in a row. He ranks sixth in the WAC with 4.16 assists per game this year and is fourth in the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.93, 79 assists and just 41 turnovers). He turned in seven assists with no turnovers in the Dec. 17 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff as well as the Jan. 10 win at La Tech and has had just one turnover in seven other games this season (most recently five assists and one turnover Jan. 15 vs. Boise State). He dished out a career-high 11 assists in the Nov. 22 win over Oregon State. He also added 11 points vs. the Beavers for his first career double-double and the Wolf Pack’s first points-assists double-double since Ramon Sessions had 11 points and 10 assists in an 84-66 victory over Boise State on Jan. 15, 2005.
WOLF PACK NEWS & NOTES
- Junior Ray Kraemer scored seven points in just five minutes in last week’s win over Hawai’i, making his only field goal attempt (a three-pointer) and knocking down all four of his free throw attempts.
- Freshman Dario Hunt blocked a career-best five shots in Nevada’s Jan. 8 win at New Mexico State, besting his previous mark of four Dec. 31 vs. then top-ranked North Carolina. He is second in the WAC with 1.89 blocks per game overall and tied for second with 2.33 blocks per league game. He has blocked at least one shot in 16 of 19 games this year, including 13 with two or more (most recently two Jan. 22 vs. Hawai’i). Hunt already has 36 blocked shots this season, which is just eight shy of the school freshman record of 44 set by Nick Fazekas in 2003-04.
- During its current five-game winning streak, the Wolf Pack has allowed its opponents just 64.2 points per game and 38.4 percent shooting (90-237).
- In WAC play, Nevada leads the conference in scoring and rebounding offense, averaging 72.5 points and 41.3 rebounds per league game. Those numbers are up from 70.3 ppg and 38.0 rpg in all contests. The Wolf Pack also paces the WAC in free throw percentage (.722) field goal percentage defense (.404), steals (7.5), offensive rebounds (14.33) and defensive rebounds (27.0) in conference play.
- The team has four players averaging in double figures for scoring in league play, led by freshman Luke Babbitt with 16.8 points per game. Sophomore Armon Johnson is averaging 12.7 ppg, while junior Brandon Fields is at 11.8 ppg and sophomore Malik Cooke 11.0 ppg.
- Fields has led the team in scoring four times this season, most recently tying Babbitt for the squad lead with 19 points in a Jan. 22 win over Hawai’i. He paced the team in scoring three times all of last year. 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 Dec. 17 vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff and had 19 Jan. 3 vs. Idaho. Fields has turned in 11.9 points per game in the last 10 contests (119), up from his average of 9.4 points per game this season (fourth on the team and first among players coming off the bench).
- Nevada is also leading the WAC in turnover margin at +2.47 and tied for 21st in the country with just 12.0 turnovers per game. Senior Lyndale Burleson has the best assist-to-turnover ratio on the squad at 2.27 (34 assists and just 15 turnovers) and would rank second in the WAC but falls short of the minimum of 3.0 assists per game.
- The Wolf Pack is getting 65.8 percent of its scoring (879 points) and 63.3 percent of its rebounding (457 rebounds) from its freshmen and sophomores this season.
- Nevada tied its season high with nine three-pointers made and shot 47.4 percent from three-point land in its. Jan. 10 win at Louisiana Tech (9-19). The 47.4 percent effort marked second-best three-point showing of the season, trailing only a 50.0 percent effort Dec. 9 vs. Sonoma State (6-12). Against the Bulldogs, Nevada got a career-high three treys from freshman Luke Babbitt (3-3), including the game-winner as time expired, while junior Brandon Fields made a season-best three (3-6) and senior Lyndale Burleson tied his career best with three (3-4).
- The Wolf Pack rallied from second-half deficits in each of its last two road wins and is now 3-5 on the year when trailing at the half. Nevada trailed 40-31 at halftime Jan. 8 at New Mexico State before downing the Aggies in overtime. On Jan. 10 at Louisiana Tech, Nevada was down 35-24 at the half and trailed 45-30 with 16:36 to play in the game before rallying for the victory.
- The Wolf Pack bench is averaging 22.1 points per game this season (420 points), and Nevada holds a 9-3 record when its bench outscores its opponent’s. In the last 12 games, the reserves have turned in 25.2 points per contest (302). Juniors Brandon Fields and Joey Shaw are Nevada’s leading scorers off the bench this year, averaging 9.4 and 7.6 points per game to rank fourth and fifth on the team, respectively. Nevada got a season-high 48 points from its bench in its Dec. 17 victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff, including 21 points from Fields, nine from Shaw and a career-best eight from freshman London Giles.
- Sophomore Malik Cooke added a career-high 17 points Jan. 3 vs. the Vandals, the second time in three games that he had turned in a career best in scoring. He had a then career-high 15 points Dec. 27 against Idaho State and followed that up with 13 points Dec. 31 vs. North Carolina. Cooke made 6-of-10 attempts from the field, matching his career high with two three-pointers made, and went 3-of-3 from the free throw line in vs. the Vandals. With 11.8 points per game in the last eight contests (94 points), he has moved into third on the team in scoring with 9.9 points per contest.
- Cooke set a career best with six steals Dec. 6 vs. UNLV and is second in the WAC with 1.74 steals per game. The Wolf Pack turned in a season-high 12 steals in its Nov. 22 win over Oregon State with four by junior Joey Shaw and three apiece by freshman Luke Babbitt and Cooke, and matched that with 12 in the Dec. 17 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Cooke also added four steals Dec. 31 vs. No. 1 North Carolina and again Jan. 22 vs. Hawai’i. As a team, Nevada leads the WAC with 7.53 steals per contest, while sophomore Armon Johnson is tied for 10th in the league with 1.21 takeaways per game.
- Nevada made a season-high 53.4 percent of its attempts from the field Dec. 9 vs. Sonoma State, besting its previous high of 51.7 percent from the field Dec. 2 at Colorado State. Nevada also turned in a season high from three-point land vs. Sonoma State (.500, 6-12).
- All 12 players scored for Nevada en route to the team’s season-high 95 points Dec. 9 vs. Sonoma State, led by freshman Luke Babbitt who had 16 on 6-of-10 shooting. Nevada also notched season bests for field goal percentage (.534), field goals made (31), three-point percentage (.500), free throws made (27) and attempted (31), free throw percentage (.871, 27-31 - since broken), rebounds (52), assists (24) and blocked shots (12) vs. the Seawolves.
- The Wolf Pack opened the year with a 2-3 record for the second consecutive season (now 12-7). Last year, Nevada turned in a 2-4 mark to start the year but won its next five games and finished the season with a 21-10 mark and a share of its fifth consecutive WAC regular-season championship. In 2003-04, Nevada also opened the year with a 2-3 mark. That year, the Wolf Pack opened the season with a win over Vermont before falling at then top-ranked Connecticut (both in the Preseason NIT). Nevada then turned in a 74-62 win at UNLV and dropped games at Portland and Pacific before reeling off wins in its next five games and seven of its next eight. The Wolf Pack finished with a 25-9 record that season, winning its first of four WAC regular-season championships and making the first NCAA Sweet Sixteen appearance in school history.
NEVADA TOP WAC TEAM OVER LAST FIVE YEARS
Over the last five seasons dating back to 2003-04, Nevada has turned in a 139-46 record, the most wins of any WAC team during that time (.751 winning percentage). In conference games, Nevada has won 73 games, the most in that same time period. The top three teams in wins (both overall and WAC) over the last five seasons:
Overall Record (Pct.) WAC Record (Pct.)
1. Nevada 139-46 (.751) 1. Nevada 73-17 (.811)
2. Utah State 137-43 (.761) 2. Hawaii 44-46 (.489)
3. Hawaii 92-77 (.544) 3. Fresno State 42-46 (.477)
UP NEXT
Following Thursday’s game at Utah State, Nevada travels to Idaho on Saturday, Jan. 31. The team returns home the following week to play host to La Tech (Feb. 5) and New Mexico State (Feb. 7).
