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SERIES 
HISTORY:
| Portland leads the series 23-14. The Wolf Pack won last year’s game 78-69 in Reno on Dec. 28. Four Pack players scored in double figures led by Luke Babbitt’s 22. The Pilots won the last two games played in Portland 63-61 on Nov. 29, 2008 and 86-70 on Dec. 4, 2003. Nevada has won five of the last seven meetings. The last Wolf Pack victory on the road was 72-64 on Nov. 25, 1997. |
| UP NEXT: | Nevada opens Western Athletic Conference play hosting the University of Hawai`i on Friday at 5:05 p.m. in Lawlor Events Center. The game will air live on ESPNU with Todd Harris (play-by-play) and Dino Gaudio (analyst).
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ABOUT THE PORTLAND PILOTS — The University of Portland is 10-3 after defeating Boise State 88-79 in its last game. Head coach Eric Reveno, the 2009 WCC Coach the Year, is 68-72 in his fifth season leading the Pilots.
The Pilots has three players scoring in double figures on the season led by 6-2, senior guard Jared Stohl who averages 13.9 points per game. Luke Sikma, the son of former NBA player Jack Sikma, is a 6-8 senior forward who averages a double-double at 12.9 points and a team-high 10.8 rebounds per game. Nemanja Mitrovic, is a 6-5 junior guard that averages 12.5 points per contest. Eric Waterford, (6-1, Jr.) is the top assist man at 3.3 per game.
Portland is averaging 72.1 points per game and allows 68.8 points. The Pilots shoot 48.3 percent from the field and 45.4 from behind the 3-point line. Defensively opponents are shooting 44.1 percent and 36.7 from behind the arc. UP outrebounds their opponents by 5.6 per game, 34.6-29.
HUNT LEADING THE WAY — Junior forward Dario Hunt is averaging near a double-double, scoring 12.4 points per game and grabbing 9.8 rebounds per outing. The 12.4 ppg is second on the team and 10th in the WAC while the 9.8 rpg tops the conference.
In the Pack’s last game at Washington, Hunt posted his fourth double-double and fifth of his career with 16 points and 14 rebounds. The 16 points led Nevada and 14 rebounds was a game high.
He ranks 12th in field goal percentage (45.9 %), is tied for third in blocks (1.3 bpg), ranks first in offensive rebounds (4.33 orpg) and fourth in defensive rebounds (5.5 drpg) in the WAC.
In the Pack’s game versus San Francisco State he scored a career-high 25 points and pulled down 12 rebounds which were both game highs as he recorded his third double-double of the season. The 25 points marked the second game of 20 or more points in his career with the first being 21 points against BYU last season. He finished with five blocks, one off his career best against the Gators.
Hunt led the Pack in scoring the first four games of the season and in rebounding the first three games of the year. It marked the first time in Hunt’s career that he has led the team in scoring in any contest and the first time he reached double figures in more than two consecutive games. In 12 games he has topped Nevada in scoring six times with two being game highs and reached double figures nine times on the year.
He grabbed 12 of more rebounds in three consecutive games until finishing with seven vs. ASU. Ten times he led the Wolf Pack in rebounding with two of those rebounding efforts tying for the honor. Eight of his rebounding totals were game highs.
YOUNG GUNS EQUAL 79% — Nevada has used four different lineups the first 12 games of the season but all have been dominated by young first-year players. Freshman point guard Deonte Burton has started all 12 games as has sophomore transfer Malik Story and returner Dario Hunt. Freshman Kevin Panzer has made nine starts, Jordan Burris six, Jerry Evans, Jr. three, Devonte Elliot three and Jordan Finn one. Junior transfer Olek Czyz has started the last two games after sitting out the past year under NCAA transfer rules after leaving Duke.
Newcomers have scored 642-of-810 points on the season which equates to 79 percent of the offense. In the top 11 scorers on the team 10 are first-year players other than Dario Hunt’s 12.4 per game which ranks second on the team
TELL ME A STORY — Indiana transfer Malik Story has been one of the top offensive weapons for Nevada in his first season in the Silver & Blue, starting all 12 games.  Story leads the team in scoring at 13.3 points per game and is third in rebounding at 3.8 per game.
He ranks ninth in scoring (13.3 ppg), 10th in free throw percentage (78.1%), third in 3-point percentage (36.8%) and third in 3-point shots made (2.42 mpg) in the WAC.
Story has produced two of Nevada’s three 20 point games this season with 21 at Houston (12/4) and 20 versus Portland State (12/20). His lowest output of the season was three versus Pacific, the second game of the season on Nov. 15.
Eight times this season he has scored in double figures including a career and game-high 21 at Houston.  In the last three games, five of the last six and in six-of-eight games he has scored in double figures. He scored nine points in the two games in the last eight in which he did not reach double digits and eight in the game prior.
He has led the team in scoring in four games; versus Boston University (14 pts), at Houston (21 pts), tied Deonte Burton for the honor in the UNLV game as both totaled 15 points, versus Arizona State (19 pts) and Portland State (20 pts) outing.
The Pack’s top long range shooter and one of the best in the WAC this season Story is making 46.8 (29-of-62) percent of his 3-point attempts. He has made a 3-point shot in every game but versus San Francisco State when he was 0-for-1 from behind the arc.
BURTON ON POINT— Freshman Deonte Burton has started all 12 games at point guard in his first season at Nevada and is third on the squad and 12th in the WAC averaging 11.2 points per game. Burton leads the team averaging 3.5 assists per game which is fifth in the WAC and his 1.45 assist to turnover ratio is seventh in the conference. The Pack’s top free throw shooter at 80.6 percent he ranks sixth in the WAC.
In the last seven games he has averaged over five free throws made per game and is shooting 84.1 percent making 37-of-44 from the line.
He produced his first double-double in a Nevada uniform and the first of the season for a Pack player with 10 points and 11 assists in Nevada’s 76-75 loss to Pepperdine. The 11 assists are the high by any player in the WAC this season. The last Pack double-double by a guard also came in a one-point loss when Armon Johnson totaled 13 points and 10 assists in an 80-79 setback at home to New Mexico State on Mar. 12, 2010 in the first game of the WAC Tournament.
Last season Luke Babbitt led the Pack with 16 double-doubles and Johnson totaled two while Dario Hunt and Joey Shaw had one each.
Burton scored in double figures in the first three games of his Pack career. Something that was not accomplished by six former Pack players that went on to NBA careers; Johnson, Babbitt, Nick Fazekas, Ramon Sessions, JaVale McGee or Kirk Snyder. Burton scored 17 in the season opening 81-66 victory over Montana then finished with 10 versus Pacific and Pepperdine.
After scoring in double figures the first three games of the season Burton struggled failing to score in double digits the next three contests averaging 5.7 per outing. He has since reached double figures in the last six games including a career-high 18 points versus Arizona State. His 15 points versus UNLV tied Malik Story for team-high honors and marked the first time he has led the team in scoring. He totaled 11 points at Houston, 12 versus San Francisco State, 13 in the Portland State contest and 14 at Washington. On the year he has produced nine double figure scoring performances.
CZYZ MOVES INTO STARTING LINEUP— Duke transfer Olek Czyz has started the last two games since becoming eligible after sitting out the past year under NCAA transfer rules. Czyz scored 10 points and grabbed seven rebounds in his debut in the Silver & Blue against Arizona State, all coming in the second half off the bench. The seven rebounds tied for game-high honors.
In his first start versus Portland State he scored five points and grabbed five rebounds. His second start was at Washington when he totaled six points and four rebounds.
HUNT BLOCKS JONES LOOKING FOR FAZEKAS — Junior forward Dario Hunt ‘s five blocks in the San Francisco State game gave him 144 in his career and moved him past Edgar Jones (1975-79) into second place on the career list. The five blocks was one off his career high of six that has occurred three times with the last coming versus Hawai`i on Jan. 30, 2009. He had three at Washington giving him 149 in 80 career games played.
Hunt began the year fourth on the list but has passed both Jones and Matt Williams (1987-91) this season. Next on the chart is Nick Fazekas (2004-07) who totaled 192 during his four seasons. His 149 blocks has come in 80 games while Jones’ 142 were in 101 games and Fazekas’ 192 were accomplished in 131 contests. Based on average Hunt’s 1.86 per game is best among the three at the top of the list. Fazekas averaged 1.5 blocks per game and Jones 1.4 during their careers.
Hunt has two of the top four block seasons in school history with 67 during 2008-09 season ranking third and his 66 last year is fourth. The 67 is the freshman record at Nevada.
EVANS AND PANZER REACH DOUBLE FIGURES — Freshmen Jerry Evans, Jr. and Kevin Panzer both produced career-highs in the Pack’s game versus Portland State. The duo reached double figures for the first time in a Nevada uniform.
Evans scored 12 points off the bench, making 4-of-8 field goals that included a 3-pointer and connected on all three free throw attempts. It was the third consecutive game in which he set a new career high after scoring seven in the San Francisco State game and eight against Arizona State.
Starting his then eighth game in a row, Panzer tallied 11 points making 5-of-8 fields with one being a 3-pointer. In the previous two games he scored just two combined points.
SLOW START — Nevada is off to a slow start at 3-9 through 12 games this season. The last Wolf Pack team’s to begin the season 3-9 were the 1979-80 and 1999-00 squads that also began the year 3-9. The last Pack squad to start the year 3-10 was the 1969-70 team that ended the year 5-17.
Nevada snapped its seven-game losing skid defeating San Francisco State, 78-64 on Dec. 11. The Wolf Pack opened the season with an 81-66 home victory on Nov. 13 but went on to drop seven in a row, six were played away from Lawlor Events Center and the seventh was versus top 25 UNLV. The seven-game skid was the longest since the 2000-01 team dropped eight in a row.
12,006 AND COUNTING — Nevada has flown 12,006 miles to play seven games this season away from Reno. The Wolf Pack flew 7,782 miles to play five games between its first home contest on Nov. 13 with Montana and a second home game on Dec. 4 versus UNLV.
In breaking down the trips, the Wolf Pack flew 388 miles each way to Los Angeles for a total of 776 miles to play Pacific and Pepperdine at UCLA’s Pauley Pavilion in the 2010 Dick’s Sporting Goods NIT Season Tip-Off on Nov. 15-16.
Next was a road trip east of 2,275 miles to Washington, D.C. to take on George Washington and Boston University in the consolation bracket of the Dick’s Sporting Goods NIT Season Tip-Off, Nov. 22-23. Returning to Reno was another 2,275 for a total of 4,550 miles.  The fifth game was a road trip to Brookings, S.D. to play South Dakota State on Nov. 30, which is a flight of 1,228 miles, times two to account for the return home so add 2,456 miles for the entire trip. The team traveled a combined 7,782 miles before playing its second home game at Lawlor Events Center on Dec. 4 with UNLV. A trip to Houston, Texas to play the University of Houston on Dec. 6 added another 3,080 miles.
The most recent road game was a 1,144 mile round trip to Seattle, Wash. to play the University of Washington Huskies prior to Christmas. Next up is a 878 mile jaunt back and forth trip to Portland, Ore. to play the University of Portland on Dec. 27.
This is all before Western Athletic play gets underway with trips to Hawai`i (5,130 miles round trip) and Louisiana Tech (3,180 miles round trip) in the future.
The last Nevada team to start the season with so many road games was the 1963-64 team that began the season with six road games to start the year and went 1-5 away from Reno. Three of those contests were played in Alaska and one was at Montana. The 2005-06 team played four-of-five games to start the season on the road and won all four on the way to a 25-9 record.
WOLF PACK PICKED TO FINISH THIRD IN WAC — Nevada has been picked to finish third in the Western Athletic Conference by both the league’s coaches and media. The Wolf Pack received 47 points in the coaches’ polls to finish behind Utah State and New Mexico State. In the media poll the Pack totaled 190 points to again rank behind Utah State and New Mexico State.
DOUBLE-DOUBLES — Junior forward, Dario Hunt posted his fourth double-double of the season in the Pack’s last game at Washington finishing with 16 points and 14 rebounds. It was Hunt’s fifth career double-double. His third double-double of the season came against San Francisco State when he scored a career-high 25 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. His first of the year was a 10 point, 10 rebound effort in the Boston U game. Against UNLV he totaled 14 points and grabbed 13 boards.
Freshman point guard, Deonte Burton produced the Pack’s first double-double of the season. Burton’s came versus Pepperdine on Nov. 16 when he totaled 10 points and 11 assists. It was the first double-double of his career.
NEVADA 0-4 IN 2010 DICK’S SPORTING GOODS NIT SEASON TIP-OFF — Nevada went 0-4 in the 2010 Dick’s Sporting Goods NIT Season Tip-Off. The Wolf Pack lost 64-53 to Pacific and 76-75 to Pepperdine in the two games played at UCLA’s Pauley Pavilion, Nov. 15-16. The next week the Pack lost at George Washington 58-56 and 66-57 to Boston University in the two games played at GW’s Smith Center in Washington, D.C. Overall Nevada is 1-5 in the preseason NIT going 1-1 in the 2003 event defeating Vermont 69-49 at home then falling 93-79 at #1 Connecticut.
BREAKING DOWN THE PACK — The Nevada bench has scored 276 points, an average of 23.0 ppg this season compared to 245 for its opponents, 20.4 ppg. The Pack bench has outscored opponents in eight-of-12 games.
Unfortunately the Pack has turned the ball over 186 times which has led to 212 (17.7 ppg) opponent points while 146 turnovers for the opponents have resulted in 146 (12.2 ppg) points for Nevada.
NEVADA ONE OF TOP WAC TEAMS OVER LAST SEVEN PLUS SEASONS
Over the last seven plus seasons dating back to 2003-04, Nevada has turned in a 172-73 record, the second-most wins of any WAC team during that time (.702 winning percentage). In conference games, Nevada has won 90 games, the most in that same time period. The top three teams in wins (both overall and WAC) over the last seven plus seasons:
SIX ESPN TV GAMES IN 2010-11 — University of Nevada men’s basketball games will air on ESPN’s family of networks six times this season. The Wolf Pack will make three appearances on ESPNU, two games will air on ESPN2 and one will be a regional ESPN telecast.
Home games on Dec. 17 with Arizona State, Dec. 31 versus Hawai`i and Jan. 8 with Utah State will be shown on ESPNU. Road games at Idaho on Jan. 12 and at Utah State Feb. 2 can be seen on ESPN2. The Feb. 24 Idaho at Nevada game will be a regional ESPN telecast.
WOLF PACK LAYUPS
Second-year head coach David Carter is 24-22 at Nevada, which is his first collegiate head coaching position.
Nevada is 0-4 in games decided by three points or less. The Pack lost by a point 76-75 to Pepperdine (11/16), suffered a two-point setback at George Washington (11/22) and twice lost by three points at Houston (12/6) and at home to Arizona State (12/17).
Nevada has led in 9-of-12 games except for vs. UNLV, Arizona State and at Washington.
Nevada has outrebounded 7-of-12 opponents on the season, all coming in the last 10 games. Washington (56-42), South Dakota State (36-35) and Arizona State (36-35) are the only teams to win the battle of the boards in the last 10 games. The 14 rebound deficit at Washington is the largest of the season.
Three times the Wolf Pack has outrebounded their opponent by 10 or more. Nevada outrebounded Houston by a season high 18, 53-35. The Pack outrebounded George Washington (45-35) and Boston University (47-32) by 10 or more boards.
Nevada allowed a season-high 90 points in its loss at Washington, 90-60 on Dec. 22.
Deonte Burton’s 11 assists vs. Pepperdine is the top mark in the WAC this season.
Burton has made 37-of-44 (84.1%) free throws in the last seven games. In the last 4 games has made 25-of-28 (89%) free throws.
Dario Hunt’s 18 rebounds at Houston is the high in the WAC this season.
Hunt’s five blocks in the San Francisco State game is tied for the top mark in the WAC this season.
Nevada’s 3-9 record is at the bottom of the WAC standings.
Nevada is averaging 15.5 turnovers per game having turned the ball over 10 or more times in each contest. The season-high was 22 at South Dakota State but the Pack also had 20 at George Washington.
The 90-60, 30-point loss at South Dakota State was the largest setback of the season and largest since a 106-70 defeat at North Carolina on Dec. 27, 2007.
Derrell Conner’s 15 points at South Dakota State is the only time this season Nevada’s leading scorer came off the bench and is his career-high.
Hunt had a stretch of grabbing 12 or more rebounds in three consecutive games snapped vs. ASU when he totaled seven. The three-game stretch was 12 vs. SF State, 18 at Houston and 13 vs. UNLV. In the last eight games he has reached double figures in rebounds six times and once had nine.
Devonte Elliott (14 at George Washington) and Kevin Panzer (11 at Houston) has the Pack’s two other double figure rebounding games.
For the first time this season, Nevada had five players score in double figures vs. Portland State, with Malik Story (20 pts), Deonte Burton (13 pts), Jerry Evans, Jr. (12 pts), Kevin Panzer (11 pts) and Derrell Conner (10 pts) reaching the mark.
Twice the Wolf Pack had four players reached double figures in a game vs. ASU and Pepperdine. Malik Story (19), Deonte Burton (18), Olek Czyz (10) and Dario Hunt (10) reached double digits in the ASU (12/17) game. The first occurrence was versus Pepperdine on Nov. 16 when Jordan Burris (15) joined by Hunt (16), Story (15) and Burton (10).
Nevada has had seven or more players score in every game this season. A season-high 11 scored in the 81-66 victory over Montana. Six times nine players scored and three times 10 players scored in a game. A season low seven scored at Houston and at Washington.
Five or more newcomers has scored in every contest this season with nine new players scoring in the Pacific contest. Seven times eight new players scored points for the Pack, once six and twice seven with a season low five new players scoring at Houston.
A total of 33 times eight different Nevada players have scored in double figures led by Dario Hunt and Deonte Burton’s nine occurrences. Malik Story scored double figures eight times. Three times Derrell Conner reached double figures. Kevin Panzer, Jerry Evans, Jr., Jordan Burris and Olek Czyz accomplished the task once each.
