Nov. 7, 2011
Complete Release 
Nevada hosts to Chico State in an exhibition contest on Tuesday night at 7:00 p.m. ?There will be no charge for the exhibition game this season. The Wolf Pack went 13-19 last season while the Wildcats were 14-13 for coach Greg Clink. The Pack returns all five starters which includes 11 letterwinners. The Wildcats have three starters returning and nine total letterwinners.
2011-12 Nevada Men's Basketball Preview
The 2011-12 University of Nevada men's basketball team returns all five starters and 11 letterwinners for third-year head coach David Carter. Last year's team was built around youth as eight players put on the Nevada uniform for the first time. The Wolf Pack went 13-19 overall and tied for fifth in the Western Athletic Conference with a mark of 8-8.
The returning starters were the top five scorers on last year's team, with four players averaging at least 12.3 points per game. In all, 91 percent of the Pack's offense from last season is back this year.
The inexperienced 2010-11 squad lost 13 games by nine points or less and 10 of those by six points or less. After starting the season 1-7, the Pack went 12-12 the rest of the year and put together a season-high four-game win streak at one point. In the first round of the WAC?Tournament, Nevada defeated Fresno State 90-80 before suffering a six-point setback to New Mexico State, 66-60, to end the year.
Another factor that contributed to a slow start was playing five of the first six games of the season away from Reno, something a young team was unable to overcome. Four of the road games were in the Dick's Sporting Goods NIT?Season Tip-Off with two in Los Angeles and two more across the country in Washington, D.C.
Backcourt
The returning starters in the backcourt are Deonte Burton, Malik Story and Jerry Evans, Jr. Letterwinners Patrick Nyeko, Jordan Finn, Jordan Burris and Keith Feutsch also return this season. Sophomore walk-on Brice Crook has joined the team for this season.
After an outstanding freshman year that saw him selected as the WAC?Freshman of the Year, Burton has been chosen as the Preseason WAC?Player of the Year by the conference's coaches. He was also named to the WAC?coaches' and media preseason teams. The 6-1 point guard was second on the team last year, averaging 13.7 points per game and a team-high 3.5 assists per contest. He was also named to the WAC?Newcomer team and honorable mention on the All-WAC squad a year ago.
Story led the team in scoring last year, averaging 14.5 points per game, made a team-high 76, three-pointers and was good on 38.6 percent of his attempts from behind the arc. In the WAC?Tournament, he scored a Pack season-high 34 points, which included a 6-of-6 performance from three-point range. The 6-5 junior was named to the Preseason WAC?Coaches' second team. He spent part of last summer traveling with Reach USA in basketball tour of China with teammate Devonte Elliott.
The 6-8 Evans started 20 games as redshirt freshman a year ago. His 4.9 points per game ranked fifth on the team and his 3.5 rebounds per game was third. Defensively, he caused problems for opponents with his length on the perimeter.
Nyeko earned the team's Sixth Man Award at the end of the season by playing 26 games off the bench. In the final 16 games of the year, his playing time increased as he averaged just over 14 minutes per game. On the season, he averaged 1.2 points and 1.3 rebounds per game in just under 10 minutes per contest.
Burris played in 30 games and earned six starts early in his freshman year. The 6-7 shooting guard averaged 3.1 points and 1.8 rebounds last year. In the offseason he worked on improving his three-point shooting.
Another Pack sophomore, Finn saw action in 27 games and made three starts as a freshman. Finn saw action at both point and shooting guard last season. He is expected to work more at point guard in his second year in the program.
Crook joined the team just prior to the first practice as a walk-on and is working to incorporate himself into the program.
Frontcourt
Seniors Dario Hunt and Olek Czyz are expected to once again lead the Wolf Pack frontcourt this season. Sophomores Devonte Elliott and Kevin Panzer provide the team with height, depth and experience off the bench. Newcomer Richard Bell is a 6-9 forward and the lone freshman on the team.
Hunt nearly averaged a double-double last season, scoring 12.4 points per game and grabbing a WAC-best 9.7 rebounds per outing. He also led the conference with 1.84 blocks shots per game. The 9.7 reboudns per game ranked 27th in NCAA?and the 1.84 blocks were 81st. His 192 career blocks entering the year is tied for first on the Nevada career list with Nick Fazekas (2004-07). The 6-8 forward has earned a spot on the All-WAC?Defensive team each of the past two seasons. Last season, he was selected to the WAC?second team and this year was named to the Preseason WAC?Coaches' second team and media squad.
Czyz became eligible second semester last year after sitting out a year under NCAA?transfer rules and started 15 of the final 16 games. The 6-7 forward was fourth on the squad averaging 12.3 points per game and his 5.7 rebounds per game was second. He joined Burton on the 2011 WAC?Newcomer team giving the Pack two representatives on the five-man squad. In WAC?play, his 46.8, three-point percentage led the conference.
Elliott started the first three games last season and appeared in all 32 contests. The 6-10 forward averaged 1.8 points and 2.8 rebounds in 11.2 minutes per game. He gained valuable experience traveling with Reach USA in a tour of China this past summer. After working hard in the offseason to add strength he should be more of a factor on the glass in his sophomore year.
The 6-9 Panzer made 10 starts and played in all 32 games as a freshman a year ago. He averaged 2.2 points and 2.1 rebounds in 11.3 minutes per game. He is another of the Pack's second-year players who is expected to make key contributions in year two in the program.
Bell comes to Nevada from West Sussex, England where he attended Worthing College Academy of Sports. The 6-9 forward will gain valuable experience in his first season playing behind a veteran frontcourt.
Schedule
After opening the season with five of six games on the road last season, Nevada plays five of six at home to begin the 2011-12 campaign. In total the Pack plays 17 regular season home contests and one home exhibition this season.
Nevada will play host to the 2011 Missouri Valley Conference champions when Missouri State comes to Lawlor Events Center to begin the season on Nov. 11. Pacific, Prairie View A&M and Longwood come to Reno the first month of the season.
The Prairie View A&M?and Longwood games are part of the Chicago Invitational Challenge that runs Nov. 20-26. After hosting those two teams, the Pack will travel to Chicago to play BYU and either Bradley or Wisconsin on Thanksgiving weekend.
Washington is at Lawlor for an ESPNU contest on Dec. 2. Nevada travels to Arizona State, another Pacific-12 school, on Dec. 7 and is then off to Montana on the 10th.
Nevada concludes the 2011 calendar year with home games with UC?Riverside, Portland and Cedarville.
The new-look WAC?has eight teams playing a 16-game schedule. Conference play gets underway in January with trips to Idaho and Utah State.
Four consecutive mid-January home games include three conference games with San Jose State, Hawai`i and Fresno State. ?The fourth game is a non-conference tilt with Nebraska-Omaha. January ends with road trips to New Mexico State and Louisiana Tech.
The month of February consists of WAC?home games with Utah State and Idaho along with a non-conference game with Cal State Bakersfield. The Pack plays three conference road games at Hawai`i, San Jose State and Fresno State. A second non-conference road game is a BracketBusters contest at a to-be-announced opponent.
The final two home games are an ESPN2 contest with New Mexico State and Louisiana Tech the first week of March.
For the second year in a row, the WAC?Tournament will be played at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, March 8-10.
WAC Race
Nevada was picked to finish first in the WAC?Coaches' Preseason Poll, receiving five of eight first-place votes. In the media poll, the Wolf Pack was second behind Utah State, garnering five first-place votes.
Three members of the Pack earned preseason honors from the WAC coaches. Sophomore point guard Deonte Burton was chosen as the Preseason Player of the Year and to the coaches' first team. Senior forward Dario Hunt and junior guard Malik Story were named to the second team. Burton and Hunt were both named the media's preseason squad.
