Brutal 6-game stretch to clarify UNLV’s season

How UNLV got here was unexpected — winning as an underdog at New Mexico, losing as a favorite at Air Force — but opening Mountain West play at 4-1 was expected.

So the conference start meant the Rebels mostly defeated who they were supposed to beat, but clarity will soon come as to where they truly stand.

Beginning with Tuesday’s 7 p.m. rematch with New Mexico (9-9, 3-3 MW) at the Thomas & Mack Center, which will be televised by CBS Sports Network, UNLV (10-7 overall) plays six games that will determine its season.

“You beat the teams you’re supposed to beat,” UNLV guard Noah Robotham said. “The Patriots beat the teams they’re supposed to beat every year, but you don’t talk about that. You do what you’ve got to do, but now we’re getting into a stretch where the games are tougher.

“All the teams we’re playing are much better defensively, so it will be a great challenge for our team, but I think we’re up for the challenge. We’ll learn a lot about ourselves. It starts Tuesday night.”

Here is how this stretch breaks down:

■New Mexico, Tuesday — The Rebels won 80-69 in Albuquerque, beginning a three-game losing streak for the Lobos. But they’re coming off Saturday’s 83-53 victory over Wyoming, and this is a team that made last season’s conference tournament final.

■At San Diego State, Saturday — This has been a strange season for the Aztecs (2-2). They lost by 14 points at Air Force on Jan. 12 and then beat New Mexico by 20 points three days later. UNLV has not won there since 2013.

■UNR, Jan. 29 — The seventh-ranked Wolf Pack is the class of the conference, though they haven’t always looked like it even in going5-1. They know how to win, and if the Wolf Pack can put it all together, they very well could make a deep NCAA Tournament run.

■At Utah State, Feb. 2 —Winning at Utah State (4-2) is always a challenge, and the Rebels have lost three of their past four trips there. The Aggies have won four of their past five games, with the one blemish a one-point loss to Fresno State.

■At Boise State, Feb. 6 — The Broncos’ 3-2 record is deceiving because they come off back-to-back losses to UNR and Fresno State. They had the Wolf Pack all but beaten. UNLV hasn’t won at Boise State since 2012.

■Fresno State, Feb. 9 — First-year coach Justin Hutson is in contention for coach of the year. Fresno State is 4-1 with its one loss by 10 points to UNR. The Bulldogs responded to that Jan. 12 defeat by going to Boise State on Saturday and winning 63-53.

“This next stretch right here is the real deal,” Rebels forward Nick Blair said. “We’re going to be able to see how we are as a whole, so we’ve got to be locked in and ready to go. All these teams are potential top-three teams, so we’re ready to go.”

UNLV’s Marvin Menzies, like most coaches, doesn’t like to talk about opponents beyond the next one, and he wouldn’t discuss in length the upcoming schedule.

But he knows what’s on the horizon.

“We’ve got a tough stretch of the schedule coming up, some tough challenges,” Menzies said. “(The players) are very aware of that.”

Contact Mark Anderson at manderson@reviewjournal.com. Follow @markanderson65 on Twitter.