University of Nevada Athletics

ABOUT THE LOUISIANA TECH BULLDOGS —  Louisiana Tech (12-18, 2-12 WAC) has lost six of its last seven games and are 3-14 in the last 17 contests.  The Bulldogs will not qualify for the WAC Tournament this season as only the top eight will be playing at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, Mar. 9-12.  Head coach Kerry Rupp is 58-71 overall in his fourth season leading the Bulldogs and 20-42 in WAC play.
    LA Tech will be without the services of its top scorer, DeAndre Brown who has missed the last three games after being suspended for violation of team rules.  The 5-11 guard is averaging 15.8 points per game and scored 14 in the earlier meeting in Reno.
    Junior Olu Ashaolu is averaging 14.6 points and team-high 9.5 rebounds per game.  The 9.5 rebounds is second in the WAC.  The 6-7 forward posted a double-double in the first meeting with 26 points and 17 rebounds.  Freshman Kenyon McNeaill is the  Bulldogs top assist man averaging 2.4 per game and contributes 8.5 points per outing.  McNeaill did not score in the first meeting and had two assists.
    Offensively the Bulldogs average 65 points and allow 67.6.  LA Tech is shooting 42.3 percent from the field and opponents 42.8.  From 3-point range the Bulldogs shoot 33.2 percent and opponents shoot 32.9.  LA Tech is making 64.7 percent of their free throws while opponents shoot 69.7.  The Bulldogs are winning the rebounding battle this season at plus 2.2 per game, 35.8-33.6.

THE FIRST MEETING - JAN 22 - WOLF PACK 66, BULLDOGS 58— RENO, Nev. (AP) - Deonte Burton scored 18 points and Dario Hunt had 16 as Nevada rallied to beat Louisiana Tech 66-58 on Saturday night.
    Malik Story added 10 points for the Wolf Pack (7-13, 4-3 WAC).
    Olu Ashaolu had 26 points and 17 rebounds for the Bulldogs (9-12, 0-7). DeAndre Brown added 14 points.
    Louisiana Tech led by as many as eight points in the first half and led 33-28 at halftime. Nevada opened the second half with a 16-6 run to go up 44-39 with 14:16 left and stretched the lead to 57-45 on a jumper by Jordan Burris with 7:33 to play.
    The Bulldogs rallied with a 9-0 run, including back-to-back 3-pointers by Brown and a dunk by Ashaolu to make it 57-54 with 4:37 left. But Burton nailed a 3-pointer with 4:17 left, and Hunt hit all six of his free throws down the stretch to put the game away.
    With the Wolf Pack leading 21-19 with 6:01 left in the first half, the Bulldogs went on an 11-2 run to go up 30-23 with 1:49 left. Ashaolu had 8 of the 11 points in the run and finished the first half with 19 points and 11 rebounds.

BURTON ON POINT— Freshman point guard Deonte Burton has started all 28 games in his first season in the Silver & Blue.  The 6-1 guard is second on the team averaging 13.2 points per which is  10th in the conference while his team leading 3.75 assists per game is fourth in the WAC.
    In the last four games he has made 11-of-20 (55%), 3-pointers, three times tying his career-high with three, 3-pointers made at Hawai`i, against Idaho and Boise State.
    Burton’s 21 double figure scoring games is second to Malik Story’s 22.  On the year he has led the Pack in scoring in eight games which ranks second to Dario Hunt’s 11.  His four 20-point games is tied with Olek Czyz for second on the team, two back of Hunt’s six.
    Scored a team-high 21 points and grabbed a team and career-high eight rebounds in the Pack’s 69-67 overtime loss at Hawai`i on Feb. 14.  At Hawai`i he made 6-of-12 field goals including 3-of-5, 3-pointers.  Made two free throws with 50 seconds left in the second half to tie the score at 59 and send the game into overtime.  He just missed a 3-pointer at the end of regulation that would have won the game.
    A 1.64 assist to turnover ratio is fourth in the WAC.  In total he ranks in five categories in the WAC.  In WAC only action he ranks seventh in scoring averaging a team-high 15.3 points per game and appears in six additional categories.
    Named Jan. 17-23 Verizon WAC Player of the Week after averaging 20.0 points, 6.0 assists, 3.0 steals and 3.0 rebounds per game, shot 75.0 percent (15-of-20) from the field and 71.4 percent (5-of-7) from three-point range
    Burton put together a stretch of five outstanding games in a row averaging 20 points, 2.4 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 2.2 steals starting with the Jan. 12 game at Idaho through the Jan. 27 home contest with Fresno State.  Burton shot 65 percent from the field, 58 percent from the 3-point line and 71 percent from free throw line in leading the Pack to a 4-1 record.  He topped the team in scoring in the first four games and three times posted games highs.  The five-game stretch began with a career-high 23 at Idaho, followed by 20 at Boise State, 22 versus New Mexico State, 18 against LA Tech and 17 in the Fresno State game. 
    Since WAC play began he has improved his 3-point shooting making 45.5 percent to rank second in the WAC.  He has made 25-of-55 attempts in WAC play.  The team’s top free throw shooter at 76 percent he has made 112-of-149 chances this season.  On the year he is making four free throws per game.  Only twice this season has he not attempted a free throw, both coming at home versus SJSU and UC Irvine.
    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 tied for 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, the first game of the WAC Tournament. 
    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, Luke 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 reach double digits the next three contests averaging 5.7 per outing.  He has since reached double figures in 18 of the last 22 games which included a stretch of nine in a row until finishing with nine in the home game with Utah State.   The nine game stretch of double digit scoring is the longest by a Pack player this season.  In the game just prior to the last 20 he also totaled nine points.

CZYZ AMONG WAC LEADERS — Junior forward Olek Czyz scored a game-high 25 points in the Pack’s last game, a 72-66 loss to Boise State.  Czyz also tied his career-high with 11 rebounds to record his second double-double of the season.  He connected on 9-of-10 field goals including both 3-point attempts but was 5-of-10 at the free throw line.  It was his fourth 20-point game of the season which ties him with Deonte Burton for second on the team behind Dario Hunt’s six.
    His first 11 rebound game was just two games earlier versus UC Irvine and he is averaging nine rebounds over the last three games.  Four double figure scoring games in the last six.
    At SJSU (2/12) Czyz made two free throws with three seconds to play to tie the score at 72 to send the game into overtime where the Pack prevailed 84-76.  His  first free throw bounced high off the iron before dropping through the net and his second was dead center.
    Nine of the Pack’s 11 wins has come since he was inserted into the starting lineup against Portland State.  He became eligible to play for the Pack on Dec. 17 versus Arizona State after sitting out one year after transferring from Duke.
    Czyz ranks in four categories in WAC play; 10th in scoring at 14.4 per game, fifth in field goal percentage making 56.3 percent of his opportunities, is third in 3-point field goal percentage at 44.2 and is 12th in rebounding grabbing 5.8 per game.
    He had a stretch of seven consecutive double figure games snapped in the home game with LA Tech on Jan. 22.  In the very next game he just missed his second double-double of the season as he grabbed nine rebounds to go along with his nine points in the Fresno State game.
    He put together three consecutive 20 point games to start the conference season.  On the year he has scored in double figures in 12-of-19 games played.  He began WAC play scoring 23 versus Hawai`i, totaled 26 at Fresno State and 25 against Utah State.  All three point totals were game highs with the 23 against UH tying teammate Dario Hunt for the honor.  The 26 points at Fresno State is the second most by a Pack player this season. 
    At Fresno State he made his first 10 field goals before missing two, 3-pointers in the last 2:14 of the game.  He finished 10-of-12 from the field which included 2-of-4 three pointers and was good on 4-of-5 free throws.
    He set then career highs in back-to-back games with nine rebounds at home versus Utah State and 10 at Idaho which were also game highs.
    At Idaho his 14 point, 10 rebound performance marked his first double-double at Nevada.
    He is averaging 12 points per game and is shooting 51 percent from the field including 38 percent from behind the arc.  The 12 points per game is fourth on the team and his 5.7 rebounds per contest are second.
   
TELL ME A STORY — Indiana transfer Malik Story has been one of the top offensive weapons for Nevada all season as his 13.7 points per game leads the team and ranks ninth in the WAC.  Story’s 2.1 assists per game is second on the team and he is fifth in rebounding at 3.0 per contest.
    He has reached double figures the last six games and a team-high 22 times on the season.  In 20 of the last 24 games he has scored in double figures and totaled nine in three of the contests during the stretch.  Topped the team in scoring seven times. 
    Story scored a career and team season-high 29 points at San Jose State (2/12) to help the Pack to an 84-76 overtime victory over the Spartans which earned him Feb. 7-13 WAC Player of the Week honors.  He made 11-of-21 field goals which included three, 3-pointers and made of 4-of-5 free throws.  In addition he dished out a career-high six assists.  He scored 21 of the 29 points after halftime.  Played a career-high 43 minutes at SJSU and then totaled 41 at Hawai`i as the Pack split a pair of road overtime games.
    The Pack’s top long range shooter had his best game from behind the 3-point arc in the WAC opener versus Hawai`i making 6-of-11 attempts to account for all 18 of his points in the game.  The six, 3-pointers is the high by a Pack player this season and equals Brandon Fields’ high from last season when he connected on 6-of-10 at San Jose State on Feb. 25, 2010.
    He ranks ninth in scoring (13.7 ppg), is 12th in 3-point percentage (38.2%) and fourth in 3-point shots made (2.32 mpg) in the WAC.  On the year he has made 65-of-170 attempts from behind the 3-point arc.  He has made a 3-point shot in all but two games, versus San Francisco State when he was 0-for-1 from behind the arc and against Boise State going 0-for-6. 
    Story has produced three 20 point games this season with 21 at Houston (12/4), 20 versus Portland State (12/20) and the 29 at SJSU (2/12).  His lowest output was three versus Pacific, the second game of the season on Nov. 15.
   
HUNT DOUBLING UP — Junior forward Dario Hunt is averaging a double-double scoring 12.5 points and grabbing a WAC best 10.1 rebounds per game.  Hunt tied his career-high with 19 rebounds against Idaho with the first occurrence coming just four games earlier versus San Jose State on Feb. 5. 
    The 19 rebounds is the best total at Nevada since Richard Sturgis had 19 versus UTEP on Jan. 27, 2001.  It is also the high in the WAC this season.  His previous career best was 18 at Houston back on Dec. 6.  He has six double figure rebounding games in the last seven.
    In four of the last five games he has not scored in double figures but is averaging 11.2 points per game in those contests.
    He leads the WAC in rebounding (10.1), blocked shots (1.75), offensive rebounds (3.68) and is second in defensive rebounds (6.43).  Hunt is 20th in rebounding and 74th in blocks in the latest NCAA statistics.
    In the UC Irvine game he recorded his team leading 10th double-double of the season with 20 points and 13 rebounds.  It was his team leading sixth 20-point game of the season. 
    On the season he has 14 double figure rebounding games, 21 times has led the team in rebounding with two of those efforts tying for the honor and 18 game-high totals on the year. Three times he just missed double figures in rebounds finishing with nine.   
    He has also led the Pack in scoring in a team-high 11 games with two of the efforts tying for the honor.  Four times he posted game highs which includes the tie with Olek Czyz in the Hawai`i game as both scored 23 points.  On the year he has scored in double figures 18 times.
    Hunt has doubled his scoring output from last season when he averaged 6.5 points and seven rebounds per game.  In 28 games this season his 351 points, 283 rebounds and 95 free throws made are career season highs. 
    In the last 16 games he has seven double-doubles to his credit and just missed an eighth when he totaled nine rebounds to go along with his 23 points versus Hawai`i.  In the 79-76 victory over Fresno State, he recorded his eighth double-double of the season and second versus the Bulldogs this season, finishing with 24 points and 11 rebounds. 
    He made 19 consecutive free throws during a three-game stretch until missing his first opportunity in the second half of the FS game.  A much improved free throw shooter he is shooting 71 percent from the charity stripe this season.  Last year he shot 47 percent from the free throw line and as a freshman 46 percent.
    In the USU home game he did not grab a rebound for the first time in his career.  He fouled out of four games in a row; at FS, vs. USU, at Idaho and at BSU.
    For the first time in his career he had back-to-back 20 plus point games, finishing with 21 at Portland (12/27) and 23 versus Hawai`i (12/31).  He also scored a career-high 25 points versus San Francisco State this season.  Six of his seven career 20 point games has come this season.
    In the San Francisco State game 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.   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 reached double figures in the first five.  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.         Hunt topped the team in rebounding the first three games of the year and had a streak of leading the team in nine consecutive games snapped in the home game with Utah State. 

DOUBLE-DOUBLES — Three players have combined to produce Nevada’s 13 doubled-doubles on the season.  Junior forward Dario Hunt has 10 while junior Olek Czyz has two and freshman Deonte Burton one.
    Hunt posted his 10th double-double in the Pack’s 74-63 victory over UC Irvine finishing with 20 points and 13 rebounds.  In Nevada’s 20-point home victory over San Jose State he scored 16 points and grabbed a career-high 19 rebounds for double-double number nine.  The 10 double-doubles is second most in the WAC this season.  He posted back-to-back double-doubles with 21 points and 14 rebounds at Portland after scoring 16 points and grabbing 14 rebounds at Washington.  In his career he has 11 double-doubles to his credit.
    Czyz posted his second of the season in the Boise State game finishing with 25 points and 11 rebounds which were both game highs.  His first double-double at Nevada came at Idaho when he scored 14 points and grabbed 10 rebounds.
    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.  The 11 assists is tied for the high in the WAC this season.