Wink helps avoid eye-opening loss

Funny how basketball works. You might have imagined Wink Adams could discover his shot in a comfortable manner against a Wyoming team that is most proficient at getting its tail kicked, that UNLV's junior guard could regain his scoring touch while the Rebels coasted past their second-rate opponent Wednesday night.

Instead, UNLV needed Adams for a more significant purpose: To avoid what would have been an incredibly embarrassing loss.

Victories aren't fish. You never toss them back. The Rebels will take their 78-71 win at the Thomas & Mack Center and promise to learn from it, comforted only by the fact their leading player again shows offensive life.

This was a forgettable performance by UNLV, or didn't you notice woeful Wyoming had nearly as many points at halftime (40) as Brigham Young did in losing 70-41 here last week? The Cowboys are last among Mountain West Conference teams for good reason. They stink.

They lost at San Diego State by 27 and trailed 19-0. They lost at Texas Christian by 25. They have a 6-foot-6-inch forward (Tyson Johnson) who missed four layups Wednesday, and I wouldn't fall over dead if just one of their players can dunk, and that's only because Joseph Taylor did. They have a 7-foot center (Mikhail Linskens) whose face paints an unswerving state of confusion, and that's before he touches the ball.

They have a fiery first-year coach (Heath Schroyer) who makes former Cowboys boss/sideline pacer Steve McClain look comatose. I doubt Schroyer can squeeze four conference wins out of his team, but he definitely has a chance of popping a vein or two before the season ends.

"We got a scare," Adams said.

He saved them from a nightmare.

Adams scored a career-high 33 points, but look closer for the real importance. He shot 9-for-21 from the field and 4-for-7 on 3s, the latter a distance Adams had made just 3 of 23 from in three previous conference games.

Curtis Terry and Joe Darger and Rene Rougeau have proven capable of carrying UNLV offensively for stretches, but the Rebels aren't good enough to contend over 16 league games if Adams doesn't contribute steady scoring. The league race today is too wide open for him to continue any lengthy slump.

"It was great to see the result of all his extra work the last week," UNLV coach Lon Kruger said. "(Adams) worked as hard as he has in his time here, before practice and after practice. When that happens, you like to see it translate into good results. Really happy to see that."

It was never going to be like last season for Adams. He might have ranked first in minutes and second in scoring then, but he was also surrounded by more experienced players able to share the weight of nightly expectations. He could blend more with that team, not always expected to stand in the spotlight. On this one, he is a fixture at center stage.

It means opponents scout him a little harder and scheme against him a little tougher and purposefully make him a tad more uncomfortable with the ball. It means he needs to do more of what we saw Wednesday, when Adams scored in a variety of ways and more often than not attacked off the dribble than settling outside.

"When my first two or three shots go in, I gain a lot of confidence," he said. "My teammates tell me to keep shooting. My coaches tell me to keep shooting. How can't you have confidence when they believe in you like that?"

Adams thought the eight-day layoff between games played a part in UNLV's sluggish start, but no amount of time should excuse how the Rebels defended early or rebounded overall. They definitely have issues containing dribble penetration, and now they get to test that weakness against the league's most athletic team in first-place San Diego State on Saturday.

It could be one of the league's best matchups this season, an Aztecs team that is more versatile offensively than UNLV against a Rebels side that is capable of defending its way past anyone. It's critical Adams doesn't lose that rhythm between now and tipoff, his importance confirmed Wednesday when he scored 12 points in the final four minutes and finished 11-for-12 from the free-throw line.

"We're not going to get any bigger (before Saturday)," Kruger said. "We're not going to change much over a few days. More than anything, we have to understand what we must do to be effective."

Translation: He's not counting on San Diego State having any 6-6 players miss four layups.

Ed Graney's column is published Sunday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday. He can be reached at 383-4618 or egraney@reviewjournal.com.