Fresno State
Nevada
Dogs Bow to Pack at WAC
3/9/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 9, 2011
LAS VEGAS, Nev. - Come tournament time, some teams get hot at the right time and are tough to handle.
That was the case for the Bulldog men's basketball team which ran into Nevada in the first round of the 2011 WAC basketball tournament.
Nevada put 45 points on the board in the first half, 19 coming from Malik Story, as it raced to a 19-point lead at intermission and cruised to victory to end Fresno State's season with a first round tournament loss, 90-80 at the Orleans Arena.
Nevada's performance was surprising considering it entered the tournament with just two wins the last six games. The Dogs could not slow down the Pack, which shot 57 from the floor in the first half, making 7 of 12 three point baskets.
Nevada finished with 12 threes in the game on 18 attempts
The Bulldogs chipped away at the lead, cutting it to under double digits late in the game, 84-76, on a Tim Steed layup with 1:16 remaining. That's as close as Fresno State would get. The Dogs scored 54 second-half points in the furious comeback. Steed led the Bulldogs with 20 points, while Greg Smith had 14 points and a career-high 20 rebounds. He's had 36 rebounds in his last two games combined. His 20 rebounds were on shy of the WAC tournament single game record, set by Jason Ellis of Boise State in a 2005 game against Tulsa.
Freshman Kevin Olekaibe scored 14 points in his hometown, making three three-point field goals. Jonathan Wills had 12 points and Steven Shepp scored nine, all on three-point buckets.
"Coming into this game we knew Malik Story was a young man who can shoot the ball very well," said head coach Steve Cleveland following the game. "We knew we needed to put a hand in his face, and for the most part we did that. He just had a great game and tremendous first half. We battled back but at the end of the day, we dug ourselves too bug a hole and against a talented team like Reno, you can't afford to do that. I was proud of the way we battled. We never gave up. I'm proud of these young men, because they have done that all season long. There's a lot of talent on this team and I think it will be ready contend for a championships in the coming years."
Fresno State loses just one senior, forward Ned Golubovic, from one of the youngest teams in the WAC.
Bulldog Notes
- Fresno State leads the all-time series 46-38 against Nevada. The Wolf Pack beat the Dogs 64-57 in the 2008 WAC Tournament at Las Cruces, N.M. in the only meeting between the two schools the WAC postseason.
- The Bulldogs finished the season with a record of 14-17, 6-10 in WAC regular season games.
- In the other men's game in the first round of the WAC tournament, No. 8 San Jose State upset No. 5 Hawai'i 75-74 on a last second shot. The Spartans will play No. 4 Idaho tomorrow at Noon PT. After Nevada's win, the Wolf pack will play No. 3 New Mexico State Thursday at 2:30 p.m. PT.
"We are Your Team!" The Fresno State men's basketball season concluded its' season with a loss in the first round of the 2011 WAC Basketball Tournament in Las Vegas. Follow gobulldogs.com for more information on Bulldog men's basketball.
