Yesterday's WAC-iness

Actually all the games were fairly mundane with no upsets, so no real wackiness. Now we still think that some network (hint: Fox, ESPN) is simply blowing it by not televising the Nevada - New Mexico State game today. This one should really be a brawl.

Anyway, on to last night:

Aggies take apart Idaho; Prepare for Wolf Pack
Jason Groves
Las Cruces Sun-News
3/14/2008

LAS CRUCES - With less than five minutes left to play and with victory a forgone conclusion, New Mexico State University students started to chant.

"This is our house."

The sixth-seeded Aggies defeated No. 6 Idaho 73-53 in Thursday's Western Athletic Conference Tournament quarterfinal at the Pan American Center.

NMSU advanced to tonight's highly-anticipated semifinal against No. 2 Nevada at 8:30 p.m.

In his post game comments, Aggies head coach Marvin Menzies said that in tournament play, coaches don't have a lot of time to enjoy victories before preparing for the next game. In this case, the next game is Nevada.

"It's going to be a hard fought battle," said NMSU senior point guard Fred Peete, who had 12 points, six assists and five rebounds against Idaho. "Defensively, we just have to stay tough on them because they are going to knock down shots."

If there was one thing the Aggies did against Idaho, it was knock down shots. NMSU was 10-for-18 (55.6 percent) from behind the 3-point line. Senior forward Justin Hawkins scored 22 of his 26 points in the first half.

Hawkins was a rebound shy of a double-double in the first half, pulling down nine rebounds. The Aggies out rebounded Idaho 28-14 in the first half and 45-34 for the game...

Go here for the remainder.

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Boise State men overcome sluggish first half to beat Hawaii, advance to WAC semifinals
Nick Jezierny
Idaho Statesman
3-13-08

LAS CRUCES, N.M. - After a horrible first half in Thursday's WAC Tournament quarterfinal against Hawaii, Boise State sophomore point guard Anthony Thomas heard it from his coaches and some of his teammates.

So when Thomas returned to the floor for the second half, he looked in the stands at the Pan American Center and found his father, who had arrived just in time for the noon tipoff.

Thomas walked to the edge of the court and listened to his father's message.

"A family secret," John Thomas said when asked what he told his son. "But I should have talked to him before the first half."

The message worked.

Thomas, who was a first-half liability and a big reason why the BSU men's basketball team trailed by eight points, settled down in the second half. He began to steer the team's offense rather than try to create it, and the Broncos became ultra-efficient and rallied for an 80-74 win. The Broncos (23-8) advanced to a tournament semifinal Friday against Utah State (24-9), which defeated San Jose State 85-65 on Thursday.

Reggie Larry scored 26 points and pulled down nine rebounds to lead the Broncos, but the senior forward said extending the season would not have been possible without Thomas' transformation...

Go here for the remainder.

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Bulldogs show fight before falling to Nevada
Gary Estwick
The Fresno Bee
3/13/08

LAS CRUCES, N.M. -- Alex Blair jumped and stretched his arms high, too high for JaVale McGee to reach. He ended the play by hanging atop the rim, while McGee fell back to the Pan American Center court.

Blair scored again on Fresno State's next possession, and the senior forward was nearly halfway through his career-best performance.

McGee then vented his frustration on the Bulldogs, a continuing assault of dunks and jump shots that ended a season of disappointments and setbacks for No. 7 seed Fresno State with a 64-57 loss in the quarterfinals of the Western Athletic Conference tournament.

No. 2 seed Nevada advances to play No. 3 seed New Mexico State tonight in the WAC semifinals. By then, the Bulldogs will be back in Fresno, contemplating their final loss of the season, one last example of what happens when they fail to score points in crucial stretches.

"We had plenty of open looks, but you have to hit those shots," said coach Steve Cleveland, whose third season ended with a 13-19 record, his first losing mark in Fresno.

Fresno State shot 33.3% from the field.

Senior Kevin Bell became the school's all-time assists leader with four in the game, but he finished with 11 points on 4-of-16 shooting. Eddie Miller also ended his career with 11 points, as did Hector Hernandez, who scored nine.

Blair scored a career-best 14 points with eight rebounds against Nevada 7-footers McGee and David Ellis and Demarshay Johnson at 6-9. But not even Blair could defend McGee, who six days earlier ruined Senior Night at the Save Mart Center with a 23-point performance...

Go here for the remainder.

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WAC Tournament: Pack pushes into semis
Steve Sneddon
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
March 14, 2008

LAS CRUCES, N.M. -- Tournament host New Mexico State now stands in the path that could lead to Nevada's fifth straight NCAA Tournament berth.

To reach the semifinal game, the Pack had to get past a slippery spot on that path, beating No. 7 Fresno State, 64-57, in a difficult quarterfinal game in the Western Athletic Conference Tournament on Thursday at the Pan American Center.

JaVale McGee helped keep the Pack's season alive, with his 22 points and 10 rebounds. Nevada, the No. 2 seed after sharing the regular-season title with Utah State, New Mexico State and Boise State, opened a 13-point lead early in the second half. But there were anxious moments as the Bulldogs sliced the lead to three points at various points in the second.

"It's a hard-fought victory for us," coach Mark Fox said. "We played very well in the first half to establish a lead. Fresno was much more aggressive in the first 10 minutes of the second half. They whittled a lead down, like a good team will. We were fortunate to hang on and show some poise late again."

Nevada ran its overall record to 21-10 as it prepares to face No. 3-seeded New Mexico State in a semifinal at 7:30 p.m. tonight on KAME 21, after No. 1 Utah State plays No. 4 Boise State in the evening's first game. The Pack won both regular season games against New Mexico State, including an 87-78 victory at the Pan American Center on Jan. 24...

Go here for the remainder.

A preview of Fresno State men's basketball 2007-2008

Here's our latest on the 2007-2008 version of Fresno State.

Coach Steve Cleveland will have a veteran team in 2007-2008 but an untested one.

Why the oxymoron?

Let's explain.

Quinton Hosley and Dominic McGuire, plus don't forget Ja'Vance Coleman despite all his difficulties, have all left the Central Valley -- Hosley and McGuire took superb athleticism and count-on-it production with them.

But Kevin Bell, Dwight O'Neill, Eddie Miller, Alex Blair, Shawn Taylor and Hector Hernandez remain and will be joined by 'newcomers' Rekalin Sims and Bryan Harvey. Newly signed freshmen Nedeljko Golubovic and Brandon Webster are now also in the mix.

Bell will end up a rarity next season -- a four-year player for Fresno State. O'Neill redshirted last year and will be a junior. Eddie Miller and Alex Blair came in from junior colleges last season. Taylor also transferred in from a community college. Hernandez will partner with Bell as another peculiarity -- a four-year Bulldog.

The senior Sims has been a basketball vagabond and will play his first and final season for the Bulldogs in 2007-2008. He was in over his head during his sole year at Kentucky but the WAC should be much more conducive to his level of talent.Harvey rarely saw the court while at Louisville during his frosh season before he transferred to Raisintown.

So Cleveland has seven upperclassmen out of his top ten players. However, the group offers but 13 years of D-1 experience, hence the tagline veteran but untested.

The Bulldogs were 22-10 overall last season but such is ancient history what with top talent departures so previous team numbers and stats don't offer much value.

Here's who is returning:

Kevin Bell -- point guard 5-10 165 senior. Bell has always enjoyed an excellent assist-to-turnover ratio. Last season, he was tops in the WAC in assists per game at 5.89 and assist/turnover ratio, posting a 2.54 figure. For the season, Bell tossed out 178 assists while committing 83 turnovers. But a major Achilles heel for him is his shooting -- just 39% from floor and 63% on free throws. These are not numbers coaches desire, especially the free throw number since the ball is generally in the hands of the point near game's end. But Bell's the little engine that could and does.

Dwight O'Neill -- shooting guard 6-3 180 senior. He came out of high school with the rep as a shooter but has also demonstrating prowess as a defender. He redshirted last season and will definitely be in the backcourt rotation in 2007-2008.

Eddie Miller -- shooting guard 6-3 170 senior. Signed as a long range bomber, Miller lived up to his reputation scoring 10.5 ppg. on 38% overall and 36% shooting on 3's. His biggest bugaboo is that defenders knew how and where to play him as he attempted but 28 free throws in 32 games.

Alex Blair -- power forward 6-8 220 senior. Blair was termed a defender and lived up to the analysis. He lacks offensive skills and is a backend-of-the-rotation type for the frontcourt.

James Tchana -- power forward 6-8 275 junior. He played in only six games due to injury and also should be a depth provider.

Hector Hernandez -- power forward 6-9 225 senior. A native of Chihuahua, Mexico, Hernandez scored 11.2 ppg. as a junior. He's the best Bulldog from three-pointland at 41% and can create matchup problems for defenders with his outside roaming. Similar to Eddie Miller, Hernandez earned just 32 free throws in 31 games--an amazingly low figure for a forward. He also grabbed 5.2 rpg. but is not considered an especially effective boardman.

Shawn Taylor -- center 6-10 220 senior. Taylor played as a freshmen at Alabama but then transferred to a junior college in Florida. He moved on to Louisiana Tech but never actually appeared there and finally worked his way to the Central Valley. He has yet to be more than a tall and athletic frontcourter due to a deficiency in the basketball skills necessary to produce numbers. Don't expect a big change.

Here's who has been on the sidelines:

Rekalin Sims -- power forward 6-8 230 senior. Sims is from the Bay Area but he first played a couple of seasons at a prep school in Maine, then at Salt Lake City College before signing with Kentucky. It didn't work out there and he returned to California, hitching up with Fresno and Steve Cleveland. His previous game was that of a small forward with more of a mid-range effectiveness. Whether he has expanded his repertoire will be determined this season.

Bryan Harvey -- wing 6-5 210 junior. Originally from southern California, Harvey is a bounceback from Louisville. As a prepster, he was rated No. 32 nationally by HoopScoop and 62nd by Prep Basketball Magazine. College Basketball News had him in its Top 62 high school seniors. Playing time was scarce under Rick Pitino so Harvey looked and then moved elsewhere. He looks to be the most talented player on the roster.

Here's the new kids figuratively and literally on the block:

Nedeljko Golubovic -- forward 6-8 230 freshman, HS NV. Originally out of Serbia, Cleveland descibes Golubovic this way: "He is a very versatile player, who can score inside and step outside and shoot the three. He will add depth and strength to our post players." Look for him to be in the mix for playing time but Fresno fans won't see a lot of him in the upcoming season.

Brandon Webster -- center 6-10 235 freshman HS TX. Webster was going to sign with Texas A&M until a coaching change occurred and then was headed to another D-1 school until that fell through. He possesses the frame coaches desire but will need time to adapt his game to the D-1 level of competition.

Expect Fresno State to continue the barrage from outside -- O'Neill, Miller, Hernandez and Harvey will be the launchers this time around -- as the Bulldogs fired up 200 more three-point attempts than opponents.

Cleveland's squad was out-rebounded by three a game last season. That ratio could worsen due to the departure of Hosley and McGuire unless a couple of frontcourters step up their games for 2007-2008. Taylor, Sims or the two freshmen need to demonstrate rebounding prowess in order for Cleveland's team to turn the board deficit into a positive.

Here's our estimate of the Bulldog starting five:
center - Hector Hernandez
power forward - Rekalin Sims
wing - Bryan Harvey
shooting guard - Eddie Miller or Dwight O'Neil
point - Kevin Bell

That's a solid starting five, especially offensively. Defense is the questionmark.