Defeat shines light on UNLV weaknesses

The thing to realize is not 45 missed shots. It’s that few of them were even open. It’s that when you defend the basketball in November as well as Cal did Friday, an opponent must play far beyond its own potential to have a chance.

That wasn’t an issue for UNLV.

The Rebels weren’t beyond anything, unless you count growing frustrated and impatient.

Lessons learned from UNLV’s first defeat this season — a 73-55 final to a California team that controlled nearly all of 40 minutes in a Global Sports Classic game — are plentiful.

Other teams will watch this tape and see how the Golden Bears took UNLV out of any comfort level, how they aggressively defended ball screens and contained penetration and made the Rebels try to finish plays individually rather than with an extra pass.

Not that UNLV threw many of those.

UNLV is pedestrian when trying to finish at the rim. Cal knew it, exploited it, benefited from it.

The Golden Bears made the Rebels one-on-one players and appeared terrific in doing so.

UNLV is at its best when dribble penetration leads to open shooters, but you can count on one hand the number of times that happened Friday. Credit Cal.

“A game where there is not anything to feel really good about,” Rebels coach Lon Kruger said. “Cal opened with authority. Quicker. Bigger. More aggressive.”

Bigger than UNLV, but not by Division I standards. Neither team has much of an inside game, but Cal held a 50-34 rebound advantage because it contested shots and rarely allowed the Rebels second chances.

UNLV would be pressed to beat Cheyenne on a day its top three seniors (Wink Adams, Joe Darger and Rene Rougeau) combine to shoot 6-of-30, but this too was a defensive clinic by Cal. The Rebels couldn’t make shots and Cal rebounded extremely well. When that happens, you lose big.

It was a mismatch in that the Rebels’ 19-game win streak at the Thomas & Mack Center was done by halftime, given the closest UNLV came thereafter was nine.

Kruger says it’s his hope that in the days and weeks to come, his players will look back on the loss and have grown from it.

If they do, it means this occurs more often: Players don’t over-dribble when lanes aren’t open.

Cal helped late on all drives, and the Rebels never solved it. They didn’t give up the ball enough.

They became irritated and forced shots. Darger had one open 3-pointer all game. Adams will appear this out of sync only a handful of times a season, but when it happens, he dribbles too much.

“I was very surprised we came in and played like this,” Adams said. “We can’t sit here and worry about it. Move on to the next one, look what we need to work on and establish our identity.

“A lot of our guys got down and were talking to the refs. Cal kept their composure and outplayed us. Lot of calls tonight. We were talking in the locker room afterward about the officials, but you have to overlook that and play.”

Especially when it has nothing to do with the outcome.

Cal didn’t get one call the first half and still led 39-26 after 20 minutes.

Whistles evened out following intermission, but the Rebels should be more concerned with how collectively well Cal defended their ball screens than any particular call.

It’s not some massive revelation a team coached by Mike Montgomery executes as well as Cal did Friday.

Visiting teams coming into an arena where the hosts have won as often as UNLV the past three years must defend like crazy to win, and holding the Rebels to 29.7 percent shooting more than sufficed.

While a win at Texas-El Paso on Monday was more impressive for UNLV than its opening four victories, the season’s first loss was more about showing the Rebels how far they must travel to regularly compete with good teams.

Not great ones. Cal isn’t great by any stretch. It just defended that way Friday.

One good thing about such a defeat: The next opportunity arrives quickly. For UNLV, that means today against a Cincinnati side that managed only 47 points in losing to Florida State.

“(The players) feel a combination of very disappointed and hurt,” Kruger said. “It’s a little embarrassing when it happens and you’re not able to respond like you want to. Cal kept that from happening.

“But you can’t accept it when someone does that to you. You have to figure out a way to maneuver around it and hopefully learn from it.”

It’s November. Cal defended like it was March. Enough said.

Ed Graney can be reached at 383-4618 or egraney@reviewjournal.com