The Nevada men’s basketball team came out firing against the Utah Utes in an exhibition victory, 71-61, on Saturday, Oct. 17. The Utes, coming off a 79-69 victory against UNLV, could not seem to bring the winning momentum into this Nevada matchup.
The Wolf Pack won the opening tipoff and got on the board off a put-back dunk from sophomore guard Peyton White. An offensive foul by the Utes kept Nevada in the advantage as junior guard Elijah Price converted an easy layup.
Price took to the basket again for another two points after the Utes committed a 24-second violation. This 6-0 opening point-run from the Pack was broken up when fifth-year guard Trey Campbell’s break-through layup gave the Utes their first points of the game.
Back-to-back fouls from both the Pack and the Utes slowed down the pace as Price went 1-2 at the line and Utah’s junior guard Jackson Holcombe went 1-2.
After the media timeout, Nevada picked the pace back up thanks to a quick shot in the paint from senior guard Keyon Kensie Jr., his first points in a Nevada jersey.
However, Kensie Jr., the Portland State transfer, wasn’t finished. He went on a 7-point solo scoring run for the Pack, consisting of two free throws, a 3-pointer and a steal to fast break dunk.
Utah wasn’t quiet during this run, as the score grew to a close 16-15, Nevada in favor, before a media timeout.
A personal foul on Utah’s junior guard Taison Chatman took Nevada junior guard TJ Coulter to the line.
Utah matched the score with a second-chance layup from Campbell before taking their first lead of the game, 20-17, when junior guard TJ Burch hit an outside three.
Missed opportunities at the rim for Nevada allowed Utah to continue to build their lead. It wasn’t until a late steal and dunk from senior guard Vaughn Weems that life seemed to be brought back into the Nevada offense.
Freshman forward Kade Snyder gathered an offensive rebound and found sophomore center Simon Majok for a quick in-the-paint jumper to cut the lead to 28-24 Utah as the game went into halftime.
Nevada headed into the locker room having shot for 28.1% from the field and 12.5% from outside the paint, while Utah had 35.5% from the field and 20% in 3-point shooting.
Kensie Jr. found the net first out of the half with a layup and, despite the 3-point response from Campbell, continued the fire when he took the ball off a tipped pass down for a dunk.
This quick start to the half prompted strong plays across the court for Nevada. Price blocked a Utah attempt at the net, then found junior guard Styles Phipps for a fast-break layup.
The teams traded scores until a put-back dunk from Weems tied the game and closed the scoring gap to 42-40.
Nevada snagged their first lead of the second half when junior guard Peter Bandeji took to the net for a layup, however, the Utes responded with a 3-point shot made by Chatman.
Nevada was finally able to pull ahead in scoring thanks to Coulter. He made both a 3-pointer and jumper shot in the paint to spark the 51-46 lead.
From there the Pack stayed ahead, and Coulter made up the majority of the scoring, with three straight 3-point buckets as well as finding the net from the free-throw line.
The Utes were not unresponsive, as junior forward Loubaki and Chatman both gained points in the paint and at the line; however, this response was not strong enough as time ticked away and they had no choice but to foul Nevada to slow down the pace of the scoring.
The game ended with the ball in the hands of Coulter, who led the team in scoring with 19 points, as the clock ran out and Nevada finished with a 71-61 victory.
Nevada saw a significant turn around in the second half in shooting, shooting 55% from the field in the half.
While Coulter led the Pack in buckets going 4-6 in the 3-point range, Kensie Jr. was a very close second, with 18 in his 24:08 on the court. Price trailed in at third with 14 points shooting 5-11 inside the paint.
Nevada will stay at home where they take on Robert Morris University in their season opener on Monday, Oct. 2 at 7 p.m.
