Lax Rebels rankle Kruger

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It has been two weeks since UNLV won a basketball game, and senior forward Joe Darger needs no reminder.

He and his teammates are constantly feeling the heat from coach Lon Kruger, who is in ill humor.

“I know he’s as ticked off now as I’ve seen him,” Darger said.

The Rebels, picked as preseason favorites to win the Mountain West Conference, are reeling from back-to-back road losses to Colorado State and Texas Christian, teams expected to be bottom feeders.

If Kruger has not smiled in a while, it’s because UNLV is underachieving in every aspect of its play.

“He has been chewing on us a little bit and telling us we’re last in the league in everything, and there’s a lot of teams in the league that are better than us right now,” Darger said.

“I think all of us players are ticked off too, especially the seniors.”

When the Rebels (13-4, 1-2 MWC) host Wyoming (12-4, 1-1) at 7 p.m. today at the Thomas & Mack Center, Darger and seniors Wink Adams and Rene Rougeau probably will be in the starting lineup.

But Kruger could throw a curveball, he said after Friday’s practice when asked what lineup he’ll start.

“I have no idea,” he said. “Five guys who will get out there and fight like crazy.”

The Cowboys are coming off an 83-79 home victory over San Diego State on Wednesday, but they have been blown out on the road, losing by 51 points at UCLA and by 24 at Utah.

Wyoming senior guard Brandon Ewing, who has a history of big games against UNLV, is the conference’s leading scorer at 19.4 points per game.

Known for keeping an even-keel attitude, Kruger said he’s bouncing between encouraging his players and getting tougher on them.

“When you’re not playing well, it’s a combination of trying to promote confidence and yet increase expectations,” he said. “You can’t settle for what we’ve got, and that doesn’t just change by being positive. But you’ve got to also be constructive with your corrections.

“We definitely have to play hungrier. We’ve got to win battles, win loose balls and take charges, all those things that are associated with the hungrier intangibles.”

Kruger said he was most disappointed with the Rebels’ lack of aggressiveness in their 71-69 loss at Colorado State on Wednesday. UNLV committed 17 turnovers, including seven early in the game that were the result of what Kruger called “very careless, very casual” passes.

“We hadn’t done that at all ever, so that was a shock,” Kruger said.

So what else is wrong with the Rebels? The team’s chemistry could be in question, but Kruger said, “That’s not an issue at all, I don’t think.”

UNLV is getting inconsistent play from its inexperienced point guards, freshman Oscar Bellfield and sophomore Tre’Von Willis, and leadership is a definite concern.

“It’s not the most talkative group and it’s not the most enthusiastic group,” Kruger said. “We need to improve those areas, but that’s not related to chemistry. Really, (Rougeau) is about the only one who’s really talkative.”

The Rebels’ defense, the strongest point of Kruger’s teams the past two years, has been at its weakest in the past two games.

UNLV’s weak-side help defense is lacking, allowing too many layups, Darger said, and “we are gambling too much, going for the steal too much, and if we don’t get the steal, they’re getting a layup.”

While several Rebels are struggling on the offensive end, Darger’s shot is heating up. He has averaged 14.7 points and shot 15-for-30 in the past three games. All but one of those shots was a 3-pointer.

“The good thing is it’s early in the conference race and we still have time to catch up,” Darger said. “We’ve got to turn things around real quick. Otherwise we’re going to be out of the race.

“I’m not really discouraged. I’m more disappointed that we’ve let those two games drop. They wanted it more than we did, so we got what we deserved.”

Contact reporter Matt Youmans at myoumans@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2907.

WYOMING AT UNLV

• RECORD: WYOMING 12-4, 1-1 MWC

• COACH: Heath Schroyer (24-22, second season; 59-69 overall, fifth season)

• PROBABLE STARTERS:

Player Pos. Ht. Ppg.

Tyson Johnson F 6-7 15.3

Afam Muojeke F 6-7 15.2

Adam Waddell C 6-10 6.0

Sean Ogirri G 6-3 14.7

Brandon Ewing G 6-2 19.4