NEVADA WOLF PACK (16-10, 8-4 WAC) at FRESNO ST. BULLDOGS (11-17, 2-10 WAC)
GAME #27
Thursday, Feb. 26, 2009 - 7:05 p.m. PT - Save Mart Center (15,596) - Fresno, Calif.
TELEVISION: KAME-TV 21, ESPN Full Court & ESPN360.com
Rich Cellini (play-by-play) & Dave Bollwinkel (analyst)
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. PT
SERIES HISTORY: Nevada leads the series with Fresno State 44-34.
LAST MEETING: Nevada has won the last seven meetings between the two teams, most recently turning in a 65-60 victory over Fresno State on Jan. 17 in Reno.
Coming off a 71-70 win over VCU in last week’s ESPNU BracketBusters, the Nevada Wolf Pack (16-10, 8-4 WAC) returns to Western Athletic Conference play this week, traveling to Fresno, Calif., to take on the Fresno State Bulldogs (11-17, 2-10 WAC). Thursday’s game will tip off at 7:05 p.m. Pacific Time at Fresno State’s Save Mart Center and will be broadcast locally on KAME-TV 21 and nationally as part of ESPN’s Full Court package. It can also be heard on Nevada’s radio flagship, ESPN 630 AM, and affiliates throughout the state with Ryan Radtke calling the action. Nevada has won its last three games and is in second in the WAC standings with an 8-4 record. The Wolf Pack holds a 5-1 record in WAC road games and has won its last three conference contests away from home. Following Thursday’s game at Fresno State, Nevada returns home to Lawlor Events Center to take on league leader Utah State on Saturday, Feb. 28.
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 34 of its last 53 games away from the friendly confines of Lawlor Events Center, including 29 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 17 of its last 30 regular-season road contests and 28 of its last 42 and turned in a 7-9 road mark last season (7-4 this year, 5-1 in WAC play). 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 45-20 record in road contests (.692 winning percentage). That includes a 31-9 record in WAC road games (.775).
ABOUT THE FRESNO STATE BULLDOGS
Fresno State brings an 11-17 overall mark and a 2-10 WAC record (ninth in the WAC standings) into Thursday’s game with Nevada. The Bulldogs have dropped three of their last four games but picked up a 71-70 win at UC Davis in last weekend’s BracketBusters games. Under the direction of fourth-year head coach Steve Cleveland (61-59 record at Fresno State), the Bulldogs returned one starter and three letterwinners from last year’s 13-19 team. Fresno State finished in a tie for sixth in the WAC last season with a 5-11 mark in league play.
Freshman guard Paul George (6-7, 195) and junior forward Sylvester Seay (6-9, 215), a transfer from Arizona State, lead Fresno State and rank in the WAC’s top 10 in scoring with 15.1 points apiece. George is also the Bulldogs’ leading rebounder, pulling down 6.6 boards per game, which ranks seventh in the WAC. Seay is adding 5.8 boards per contest, which is tied for 13th in the league. As a team, Fresno State is leading the WAC with 6.96 three-pointers made per game and is shooting 34.2 percent from beyond the arc (195-571).
IN THE SERIES
Nevada holds a 44-34 advantage in the series with Fresno State and has won the last seven games between the two teams and 13 of the last 16. Nevada turned in a 65-60 victory over Fresno State in this year’s first meeting on Jan. 17 in Reno, while the Wolf Pack captured all three meetings with the Bulldogs last year, turning in a 79-67 win on Jan. 31 in Reno, a 76-63 victory on March 8 in Fresno in the regular season and a 64-57 win on March 13 in the quarterfinals of the WAC Tournament in Las Cruces, N.M. The series is tied at 19-19 in games played in Fresno, while Nevada has won four of the last five road contests in the series.
LAST TIME VS. FRESNO STATE
Freshman Luke Babbitt scored 22 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to lead the Nevada Wolf Pack past the Fresno State Bulldogs, 65-60, on Jan. 17 at Lawlor Events Center.
Nevada led by as many as 15 points, 46-31, with 13 minutes to play. Paul George scored 16 points and Sylvester Seay added 13 for Fresno State.
A layup by junior Joey Shaw at the buzzer gave Nevada a 31-27 halftime lead. Nevada led by as much as eight, 30-22, in the opening half after sophomore Malik Cooke scored inside with just under two minutes to play. Nevada outscored Fresno State 15-1 at the free throw line in the first half.
The Wolf Pack went on an 8-0 run to take a 21-14 lead with 6:34 to play in the first half. A dunk by freshman Dario Hunt off a feed from sophomore Armon Johnson and a left-handed jumper in the lane by Babbitt keyed the run.
A steal and a layup by Bryce Cartwright gave Fresno State its last lead of the first half at 14-13 with 9:45 to play.
Seay drained a 3-pointer to cut Nevada's lead to 30-27 with a minute to play in the first half. Seay, who finished with 11 first-half points, also hit a 3-pointer five minutes into the game to give the Bulldogs their first lead of the game at 8-6.
LAST TIME OUT
Freshman Luke Babbitt's free throw with 1.8 seconds left helped Nevada beat Virginia Commonwealth 71-70 in an ESPNU BracketBuster game on Feb. 20 at Lawlor Events Center.
VCU's Joey Rodriguez hit a 75-foot three-pointer at the buzzer, but the Rams couldn't overcome the Wolf Pack's late rally from nine points down with six minutes to play.
Babbitt and junior Brandon Fields had 15 points each to lead Nevada. Sophomores Malik Cooke and Armon Johnson had 13 each.
Eric Maynor had 28 points for VCU, which led by as many as 10 points in the second half. Nevada cut the lead to six with 9:27 left, but Wolf Pack coach Mark Fox was hit with a pair of technical fouls and ejected with 8:20 to play.
Maynor's two free throws after the second technical made it 60-51. The Rams led 62-53 with six minutes left.
Johnson sparked an 18-5 Nevada rally with a three-point play with 5:01 to play and gave the Wolf Pack its first lead of the half at 68-67 with 28.6 seconds left.
Junior Joey Shaw, who finished with 11 points for Nevada, hit a pair of free throws to make it 70-67 with 13.7 seconds left. Maynor missed a three-pointer on the ensuing possession and Babbitt was fouled after getting the rebound with 1.8 left.
He missed the first of two free throws, but hit the second to give Nevada a four-point lead. Rodriguez was just across the opposite free throw line when he threw in the rainbow at the buzzer for the final margin.
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 both scoring and rebounding this season. The McDonald’s High School All-American is averaging 16.2 points per game and ranks fifth in the WAC as well as fifth among the nation’s freshmen in scoring. Babbitt is also leading the Pack in both categories in conference play, checking in at fourth in the WAC with 17.0 points and second with 7.7 rebounds per conference contest.
He has turned in seven 20-point games this season, including a career-best 24 points Jan. 31 at Idaho and 23 Feb. 5 vs. La Tech. He has also scored 22 points three times and has led the team in scoring in 12 of 26 games, including seven of the last 15. He has been in double figures for scoring in all but two contests this year 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 7.4 rebounds per contest. He has led the Wolf Pack in rebounding 14 times this season (including seven of the last 12 games), most recently pulling down six boards Feb. 5 vs. La Tech and eight Feb. 20 vs. VCU. He has turned in five games with 10 or more rebounds, including a career-best 13 boards Jan. 17 vs. Fresno State. Babbitt also leads the Wolf Pack with five double-doubles, including 24 points and 10 rebounds Jan. 31 at Idaho. 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.
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. Wit 405 points on the year, he is also closing in on Nevada’s freshman scoring record of 457 points set by Edgar Jones in 1975-76.
NATION’S TOP FRESHMEN SCORERS IN 2008-09
Name, School PPG
1. Seth Curry, Liberty 20.7
2. Sylven Landesberg, Virginia 18.0
3. Tyreke Evans, Memphis 17.1
4. Mike Rosario, Rutgers 17.0
5. Luke Babbitt, Nevada 16.2
6. Willie Warren, Oklahoma 15.6
7. Paul George, Fresno State 15.1
8. Courtney Fortson, Arkansas 14.6
9. Afam Muojeke, Wyoming 14.3
10. Keith Gabriel, VMI 14.1
11. Samardo Samuels, Louisville 12.2
12. Alex Young, IUPUI 10.8
NEVADA’S ALL-TIME TOP FRESHMAN SCORERS
Name, Year Points
1. Edgar Jones, 1975-76 457
2. Nick Fazekas, 2003-04 429
3. Luke Babbitt, 2008-09 420
4. Pete Padgett, 1972-73 416
5. Terrance Green, 1999-00 402
6. Armon Johnson, 2007-08 379
7. Ric Herrin, 1989-90 273
FINDING ITS TOUCH
Nevada appears to be finding its shooting touch over the last few weeks and has shot 44.6 percent from the field in its last five games (144-323), up from its season percentage of 42.1 percent. The Wolf Pack made a season-best 62.3 percent of its field goal attempts Feb. 12 at San Jose State (33-53), including a blazing 66.7 percent in the first half (18-27). That bested its previous high of 53.4 percent Dec. 9 vs. Sonoma State. Sophomore Malik Cooke is leading the squad and ranked eighth in the WAC in field goal percentage, knocking down 53.8 percent of his attempts this season (85-158), including an 8-of-9 effort Feb. 12 at San Jose State.
The Wolf Pack is also shooting well from three-point land in recent games, connecting on 36.4 percent of its attempts (40-110) in the last seven games. On the season, Nevada is shooting 29.3 percent from three-point land. The team has made at least seven three-pointers in four of its last seven games, including an 8-of-14 effort Feb. 12 at San Jose State (.471). Junior Joey Shaw made a career-high 5-of-8 long-range attempts to lead the team vs. the Spartans. Nevada has notched its season high of 50 percent in three-point percentage twice this year with a 6-of-12 effort Dec. 9 vs. Sonoma State and a 7-of-14 showing Jan. 29 at Utah State. 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). 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).
Babbitt is shooting 45.2 percent from three-point land this year (28-62), which would rank among the WAC’s leaders, but he falls short of the league minimum of 2.0 made per game. He has made all three of his attempts Jan. 29 at Utah State, tying his career best for three-pointers made, and was 2-of-2 Feb. 5 vs. Utah State and Feb. 20 vs. VCU. Sophomore Malik Cooke has made 46.7 percent of his three-point attempts (7-15).
HUNT SETS NEVADA ROOKIE RECORD FOR BLOCKED SHOTS
With 60 blocked shots already this season, freshman Dario Hunt has set Nevada’s freshman single-season record, passing the 44 rejections that Wolf Pack great Nick Fazekas had in his rookie campaign in 2003-04. Hunt leads the WAC and ranks 30th in the country with 2.31 blocks per game overall, while he also paces the WAC with 3.00 blocks per league game. He has already climbed into third on Nevada’s single-season chart with his 60 rejections. Hunt blocked a career-best six shots in a Jan. 31 win at Idaho, besting his previous high of five Jan. 8 at New Mexico State and Feb. 7 vs. New Mexico State. He has blocked at least one shot in 23 of 26games this year, including 20 with two or more.
As a team, Nevada leads the WAC and ranks 24th in the nation with 5.12 blocked shots per game with a season high of 12 Dec. 9 vs. Sonoma State. In conference play, the Wolf Pack leads the league with 5.92 blocks per game. In the last nine games, Nevada has blocked an average of 6.4 shots per game (58), including nine Feb. 12 vs. the Spartans.
NEVADA SINGLE-SEASON BLOCKS
Name, Year Games Blocks
1. Edgar Jones, 1977-78 27 96 (3.6 per game)
2. JaVale McGee, 2007-08 33 92 (2.8)
3. Dario Hunt, 2008-09 26 60 (2.3)
4. Greg Palm, 1981-82 28 55 (2.0)
5. Nick Fazekas, 2004-05 32 51 (1.6)
6. Nick Fazekas, 2005-06 33 49 (1.5)
7. Nick Fazekas, 2006-07 32 48 (1.5)
Greg Palm, 1980-81 26 48 (1.8)
WIPING THE GLASS
The Wolf Pack has outrebounded 14 of its last 15 opponents, including a 34-33 advantage Feb. 20 vs. VCU, and is now 12-6 on the year when outrebounding its opponents. Nevada was outrebounded at Hawai’i on Feb. 14 35-30, marking the first time in 13 games that its opponent had won the battle of the boards. Nevada outrebounded Idaho 44-32 on Jan. 31, and the +12 advantage vs. the Vandals was the second-highest rebounding margin for the Wolf Pack this season, surpassed only by a 14-board advantage Dec. 9 vs. Sonoma State (52-38).
On Jan. 8 at New Mexico State, Nevada was down 27-17 in the rebounding battle at the half but outboarded the 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.
As a team, Nevada leads the WAC in rebounding offense with 37.0 boards per game and ranks second in offensive rebounding with 12.42 offensive boards per contest. In WAC games, Nevada is also pulling down a league-best 37.9 rebounds per game.
Freshman Luke Babbitt is the team’s top rebounder, checking in at third in the WAC with 7.4 boards per game and second with 7.7 rebounds per league tilt. 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 10th in the WAC with 6.0 rebounds per contest, including a career-best 12 boards Jan. 31 at Idaho. Cooke is Nevada’s best offensive rebounder this season, checking in at fourth in the WAC with 2.69 offensive rebounds per game this year, and is averaging 6.7 boards per contest in league play (second on the team and eighth in the WAC). Cooke turned in his first career double-double with 12 points and a then career-best 10 rebounds Jan. 22 vs. Hawai’i and has been in double figures for rebounds four times this season.
JOHNSON TURNS IT ON
Sophomore Armon Johnson is now second on the team and seventh in the WAC with 15.1 points per contest. The preseason WAC Player of the Year has paced the team in scoring nine times this year, most recently scoring 25 of Nevada’s 47 points and hitting the game-winning shot Feb. 14 at Hawai’i. He also had 27 points Feb. 5 vs. La Tech and turned in a career-high 33 points on Dec. 20 at California. In the last seven games, Johnson has scored 17.4 points per game (122 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 in the second half Dec. 2 at Colorado State, 14 of 16 in the final 20 minutes Dec. 14 vs. Southern Illinois and 18 of 27 in the second half Feb. 5 vs. Louisiana Tech.
Johnson is also leading the team in assists for the second year in a row. He ranks fifth in the WAC with 4.27 assists per game this year and is fifth in the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.85, 111 assists and just 60 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 nine other games this season (most recently eight assists and one turnover Feb. 20 vs. VCU). 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.
FOX MOVES INTO THIRD IN ALL-TIME WINS AT NEVADA
With Nevada’s 69-65 win Jan. 31 at Idaho, Nevada head coach Mark Fox moved into sole possession of third on the Wolf Pack’s all-time wins list, passing Sonny Allen (114-89 record in seven seasons from 1980-87). Fox holds a 118-40 career record in his five seasons at the helm of the Wolf Pack program (.747 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.) 118-40 (.747)
4. Sonny Allen (1980-87) 114-89 (.562)
5. Len Stevens (1987-93) 91-79 (.535)
6. Pat Foster (1993-99) 90-81 (.526)
SUCCESS AT THE CHARITY STRIPE
Nevada ranks second in the WAC and 45th in the nation in free throw percentage this season, knocking down 73.2 percent of its attempts from the line (415-573). Nevada made a season-high 88.9 percent of its free throws in last week’s win over VCU in the ESPNU BracketBusters (27-27), including a perfect 7-of-7 effort by junior Joey Shaw. The Wolf has been over 80 percent at the line five times this year. Saturday’s effort bested Nevada’s previous season high of 87.5 percent in its Dec. 14 win over Southern Illinois (21-24).
Freshman Luke Babbitt is shooting 82.1 percent from the line (96-117) to rank third in the WAC, including all eight of his attempts Dec. 14 vs. Southern Illinois and Dec. 27 vs. Idaho State. Sophomore Armon Johnson checks in at sixth in the WAC at 79.7 percent (98-123), including a perfect 7-for-7 night Feb. 5 vs. La Tech and 5-of-5 outing Feb. 12 at San Jose State. Johnson has made 95.8 percent of his free throw attempts in the last four games (23-24), including an 8-of-9 effort Feb. 14 at Hawai’i and a 3-of-3 showing Feb. 20 vs. VCU.
Junior Ray Kraemer has made 23-of-26 of his free throw attempts on the year (.885) and would lead the WAC, while junior Joey Shaw is shooting 79.6 percent (43-54) which would rank seventh, but both players fall short of the league’s 2.0 minimum per game.
WOLF PACK NEWS & NOTES
- The Wolf Pack has rallied from a halftime deficit in each of its last two games and holds 5-6 mark on the year when trailing at the half. Nevada was down 32-28 to VCU at the half and trailed by as many as 10 points with 10 minutes to play before rallying for the Feb. 20 victory over the Rams. Nevada also trailed 27-24 at the half and 46-39 with 2:48 to play at Hawai’i on Feb. 14 but held the Rainbow Warriors scoreless the rest of the way en route to the 47-46 victory. Sophomore Armon Johnson scored six of Nevada's eight points in the Wolf Pack's 8-0 run over the final 2:48 of that game, including the game-winner with 7.6 seconds left. On Jan. 8 at New Mexico State, Nevada trailed 40-31 at halftime before downing the Aggies 79-71 in overtime, while 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.
- Freshman Luke Babbitt and junior Brandon Fields led five Wolf Pack players in double figures for scoring with 15 points each in last week’s victory over VCU. That marked the first time this year that Nevada has had five players in double figures for scoring and the sixth time this season that the team has had at least four.
- Fields has led the team in scoring five times this season, most recently tying freshman Luke Babbitt for the squad lead with 15 points in a Feb. 20 BracktBusters win over VCU. He paced the team in scoring three times all of last year. Fields also 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.
- Including five games this year (5-0 record), Nevada has won 57 of its last 59 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. Nevada held Sonoma State to a season-low 39 points Dec. 9, while the team allowed Hawai’i just 46 Feb. 14 in Honolulu.
- The Wolf Pack and head coach Mark Fox have turned in a combined 43-13 record over the final two months of the season (February and March) in the last five years, including a 29-5 record in the month of February and a 14-8 mark in March.
- Nevada has held its last four opponents to just 61.5 points per game.
- Freshman Dario Hunt led the team and tied his career high with nine rebounds Feb. 14 at Hawai’i. It marked the fourth time this year that he has paced the team in rebounding and the third consecutive game. Hunt has turned in 6.5 boards per game in the last four contests (26), up from his season average of 4.7 rebounds per game (third on the team).
- After holding Hawai’i to just 34.0 percent shooting in its Feb. 14 win (16-47), Nevada now ranks second in the WAC in field goal percentage defense, allowing its opponents to shoot just 41.5 percent.
- Junior Joey Shaw led four Wolf Pack players in double figures for scoring with a career-best 23 points off the bench Feb. 12 at San Jose State, the second time this year that he has led the team in scoring and his second 20-point effort of the season.
- Sophomore Malik Cooke has tied his career best for scoring twice this year, most recently turning in 17 points on 8-of-9 shooting Feb. 12 at San Jose State. He also scored 17 Jan. 3 vs. Idaho, which was 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 vs. the Vandals. He ranks third on the team in scoring with 9.3 points per tilt.
- Nevada’s Feb. 5 game with La Tech marked the third time this year that the Wolf Pack has had two players score at least 20 points (at Colorado State and at New Mexico State were the other two games). Sophomore Armon Johnson led the team with 27 points, the second-most points of his career, while freshman Luke Babbitt added 23 points, just one off his career high of 24 set on Jan. 31 at Idaho. Babbitt was 9-of-11 from the field, including both of his three-point attempts, and made all three of his free throw attempts Feb. 5 vs. La Tech.
- Sophomore Malik Cooke nabbed five of Nevada’s nine steals Jan. 31 at Idaho, one short of his career high of six Dec. 6 vs. UNLV. Cooke ranks tied for second in the WAC with 1.81 steals per game and leads the league with 2.00 thefts per conference game. Cooke has had at least one steal in 20 of 26 games this season, including 12 with two or more. Cooke also added four steals Dec. 31 vs. No. 1 North Carolina and again Jan. 22 vs. Hawai’i. 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. As a team, Nevada is second in the WAC with 6.96 steals per contest.
- In WAC play, Nevada leads the conference in rebounding offense and ranks fourth in scoring offense, averaging 68.9 points and 37.9 rebounds per league game. The Wolf Pack also ranks second in the WAC in offensive rebounds in conference play (13.25).
- Nevada is third in the WAC in turnover margin at +1.27 and ranked 37th in the country with just 12.3 turnovers per game, including a season-low six Feb. 5 vs. La Tech and Nov. 15 at Montana State. Senior Lyndale Burleson has the best assist-to-turnover ratio on the squad at 2.13 (49 assists and just 23 turnovers) and would rank second in the WAC but falls short of the minimum of 3.0 assists per game. Burleson has not turned the ball over in 10 of 26 contests this season.
- The Wolf Pack is getting 67.2 percent of its scoring (1209 points) and 63.8 percent of its rebounding (614 rebounds) from its freshmen and sophomores this season.
- The Wolf Pack bench is averaging 21.3 points per game this season (554 points), and Nevada holds a 12-3 record when its bench outscores its opponent’s. Juniors Brandon Fields and Joey Shaw are Nevada’s leading scorers off the bench this year, averaging 8.9 and 7.9 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.
- Junior Ray Kraemer scored seven points in just five minutes Jan. 22 in the win over Hawai’i, making his only field goal attempt (a three-pointer) and knocking down all four of his free throw attempts.
- 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 16-10). 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 5 YEARS
Over the last five seasons dating back to 2003-04, Nevada has turned in a 143-49 record, tied for the most wins of any WAC team during that time (.745 winning percentage). In conference games, Nevada has won 76 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 143-49 (.745) 1. Nevada 76-20 (.792)
Utah State 143-45 (.761) 2. Hawaii 48-48 (.500)
3. Hawaii 96-80 (.545) 3. Fresno State 43-51 (.457)
UP NEXT
Following Thursday’s game at Fresno State, Nevada returns home to play host to league-leading Utah State on Saturday, Feb. 28 at Lawlor Events Center. The Wolf Pack will hold its Senior Night on Thursday, March 5 when San Jose State comes to Reno, while the team wraps up the regular season at Boise State on Saturday, March 7.
