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Nevada V.S. Loyola Marymount: Game Preview
Nevada needs a win against LMU with a tough part of their schedule ahead.
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Can Lindsey Drew give an encore to his 30 point performance Tuesday?
WHO: Nevada Wolf Pack (0-1, 0-0 Mountain West) vs. Loyola Marymount Lions (1-0, 0-0 WCC)
WHEN: Saturday, November 9 — 10:00 PM ET/7:00 PM PT
WHERE: Lawlor Events Center, Reno, NV
TV: AT&T Sportsnet
STREAM: Watch Stadium (out of marker) AT&T SportsNet
RADIO: ESPN Radio 94.5 FM
SERIES RECORD: Loyola Marymount leads all-time series 16-11
ODDS: Nevada -8, per KenPom
https://twitter.com/NevadaHoops/status/1192613717554466817
PREVIEW: Nevada fought hard earlier this week against a tough Utah squad. Even though they were a young team (5 freshmen, 3 sophomores and 1 junior logged minutes), the Utes displayed an ability to get to the rim that the Wolf Pack couldn’t fully stop, great length and rebounding ability.
The Wolf Pack ran most of their offense through senior guard Lindsey Drew who poured in 30 points, 8 assists and grabbed 6 rebounds but had little contribution from the rest of the team. Jazz Johnson contributed 16 points but went 6-16 from the field and Nisre Zouzoua almost hit double digits with 9 points going 3-10 from the field.
The biggest question of the week was junior guard Jalen Harris’ status for Saturday and the rest of the season as he was seen wearing a boot on his right foot as he sat on the bench during the second half of Tuesday night’s game. Steve Alford’s group is already a bit inexperienced and lacks depth, so a long-term injury to Harris who was supposed to be a key contributor this season would have been bad news.
As of Wednesday X-rays performed have come back negative, so a possible break or fracture can be ruled out. Harris is set to undergo MRI testing sometime next week and will not likely suit up for Nevada on Saturday.
Loyola Marymount is coming off of a 105-62 win over Westcliff University Tuesday night. The Lions were picked to finish 7th in the West Coast Conference this year after having a 10-1 start last year and making it to the quarterfinals of the CBI Postseason Tournament. They lost James Batemon (16.4 PPG) to graduation and senior center Mattias Markusson (10.2 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.1 blocks a game) is redshirting this year.
Their third-leading scorer from last season, sophomore guard Dameane Douglas (8.3 ppg) is expected to miss the entire season with an injury suffered in preseason play. Instead, the Lions will rely heavily on forward Ivan Alipiev (25 points and 6 rebounds) and freshman forward Keli Leaupepe (15 points on 7-9 field goal attempts) who led the Lions to their Tuesday night win.
Alford needs some more guys to score, and to make sure his players stay out of foul trouble, as we saw JohnCarlos Reyes and KJ Hymes both foul out with time to play in the second half Tuesday. The team needs a win going to a tough part of their schedule as they host USC on Nov. 16th and then travel to Davidson on Nov. 19th.
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