Rebels’ resiliency on display ahead of SoCal Challenge tourney

The UNLV men’s basketball team has shown promise through four games at home.

In a 60-52 win Tuesday against No. 21 Dayton, UNLV and its defense proved it can compete with teams above its weight class. A 78-68 win Friday against a high-scoring High Point team added confidence that the Rebels can avoid trap games.

Now, the Rebels take their vaunted defense on the road, leaving the comfortable confines of the Thomas & Mack Center for the first time this season.

“I think we’re in a great spot, because we’re better than we were four games ago,” UNLV coach Kevin Kruger said. “That’s about all we can ask for right now.”

The Rebels head to Southern California this week to take part in the SoCal Challenge. UNLV will play Southern Illinois at 10 p.m. Monday at The Pavilion at JSerra in San Juan Capistrano, California. Then, the Rebels will play either Minnesota or California Baptist on Wednesday.

Senior Luis Rodriguez said he is looking forward to the road trip and thinks it will be good for the Rebels to play some games without a home crowd supporting them.

“We’ll play some good teams,” he said. “I think our team is excited, everybody on the staff is excited, so it should be fun.”

UNLV has shown some intriguing traits early this season. The Rebels (4-0) have forced at least 20 turnovers in each game. They’re active in passing lanes, and they bait opponents into travels, charges and shot-clock violations.

Offensively, the Rebels can struggle at times. They’re not a great shooting team, but they are athletic and get out in transition. They’ve also demonstrated strong rebounding skills at times.

The most intriguing part of UNLV’s mental makeup so far, though, has been its resiliency. UNLV trailed at halftime against Dayton and High Point, but in both games, the Rebels regrouped and came out looking like a different team.

UNLV scored 38 in the second half against Dayton and had 45 points after the break against High Point.

“Heading into the locker room, none of the guys had their heads down,” senior center David Muoka said. “We all had our heads up. We’ve been down before.”

Kruger praised his players for taking responsibility for themselves and holding each other accountable. He said UNLV’s first-half defense against High Point was uncharacteristic, but his team immediately understood what needed to change.

The UNLV coach also gave credit to his new veteran leaders — Rodriguez and fifth-year wings EJ Harkless and Elijah Parquet — for buying in and setting the tone for the rest of the team.

“Watching them take the game plan or strategy we’ve had since June, and continue to make it their own is really fun,” Kruger said. “It’s fun to be a part of it. When you have those guys out there, pointing and talking, coming together and figuring out how to get a stop, it’s something we can continue to get better at because it will just grab a life of its own.”

The Salukis (3-1) pose an intriguing challenge for the Rebels. Southern Illinois already has a Power Five win this season, having beaten Oklahoma State 61-60 on the road. Senior forward Marcus Domask (15.3 ppg) and senior guard Lance Jones (13.8 ppg) lead the team in scoring.

“They understand the job we have in front of us at the SoCal Challenge and how difficult that’s going to be,” Kruger said. “They’re already talking about it, doing what they need to do to get ready, but I’m excited with where we’re at and the progress we’ve made.”

Contact reporter Andy Yamashita at ayamashita@reviewjournal.com. Follow @ANYamashita on Twitter.