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Can UNLV hold off a high-powered offense?
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Seattle comes to Vegas!
UNLV hosts a WAC team, but don’t expect the Runnin Rebels to run away with this one. The Seattle Redhawks have no shortage of scoring punch and could absolutely outscore UNLV in Vegas.
This game tips at 7 p.m. PT and can be streamed right here on YouTube.
Seattle Key Players:
Cameron Tyson: Tyson, a transfer from Houston, never saw big minutes during his two seasons (one redshirt) with the Cougars. Tyson averages 16.6 points during his debut season in Seattle. Tyson’s eclipsed the 20-point mark three times this year, most recently last week against VMI.
Darrion Trammell: The former JUCO standout entered the transfer portal following last year before returning to Seattle. Trammell posted bigger numbers last year (20.6 points on 15 shots) compared to 13.4 points on 11 shots in 2021-22. Trammell also brings a an experienced presence as a point guard despite not scoring the way he did last year.
Riley Grigsby: The senior wing broke out last season, shooting a career-best 38 percent from deep. However, Grigsby hasn’t replicated last year’s successes, as his three-point shooting percentage sits around 22 percent. Seattle becomes infinitely more dangerous once Grisgby finds his jumper, but it hasn’t surfaced quite yet.
Interim Head Coach Chris Victor’s Redhawks love shooting the ball from deep — nearly half of their shots come from outside. UNLV might not have the offensive output needed to keep pace if those shots are falling. However, Seattle plays a small lineup, allowing Royce Hamm Jr to find scoring lanes inside using his strength.
It goes without saying — but Bryce Hamilton performing on the offensive end makes UNLV far more dangerous. He’s always been a guy that could go off for 30 any given night, but there are some lumps mixed in there. Hamilton’s only shooting 40 percent from the field and below 30 percent from deep, which mirrors UNLV’s overall team numbers. Some players have stepped up occasionally, but there isn’t a bonafide number two scoring option behind Hamilton. Kent State transfer Mike Nuga could be the guy but has struggled recently.
There’s a major size advantage in UNLV’s favor, as I mentioned earlier. If they try getting downhill with the guards and let the bigs get good positioning inside, that could pose issues for Seattle.
Prediction:
Seattle 78
UNLV 73
Based on the early-season showings, It would be tough for UNLV to keep pace with the rampant scoring Seattle offense. That gives the Redhawks an upset road victory, in my prediction.
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