When first-year UNLV basketball coach T.J. Otzelberger took over the Runnin’ Rebels program, he implemented a new offensive philosophy from top to bottom. The enthusiastic coach took the offense from Marvin Menzies’s sleepy half-court set to a fast-paced, shooter friendly concept predicted on quick shots and transition offense.
The Rebels (1-1) will showcase the offense once again tonight as they hit the road to take on Pac-12 opponent, California, at 8 p.m. Fresh off a 60-56 overtime loss to defending Big 12 champion, Kansas State, UNLV is looking for an early quality win for the team’s postseason resume. Tonight marks the first of two games against Pac-12 opponents, which also includes a road showdown with UCLA Friday night.
Otzelberger’s offensive philosophy has many fans buzzing, as it harkens back to the old days when the Runnin’ Rebels actually ran.
“I think any successful offense in the halfcourt has to start with your intent to want to move the basketball,” Otzelberger told the Las Vegas Sun. “It comes down to ball movement, player movement. I think at times, offenses become stagnant with over-dribbling. We want to be a team that’s passing, cutting and moving, making the defense shift sides of the floor as quickly as possible so we can keep that pace and flow going, and keep the defense on their heels.”
The new offensive philosophy preaches quick shots, over a slow-moving offensive gameplan. The plan is to get the ball across the timeline in less than two dribbles, while trying to create as many possessions as possible. Last year with South Dakota State, Otzelberger’s offenses averaged 74 possessions per game, which was good enough for 54th nationally. In comparison, UNLV was ranked 167th in the sleepy Menzies sets that tended to rely far too often on the dribble-dribble-shoot approach.
“To me, the best time to score the ball is before the defense is set,” Otzelberger said. “In order to do that, you have to be in great physical shape, you have to be in great mental shape and you have to be committed to sprinting the floor every possession.”
In a numbers-driven era, Otzelberger has been stressing the importance of analytics to his players. For Otzelberger, the catch-and-shoot 3-pointer and the midrange jumper are both low percentage shots. In fact, his goal is to eliminate them entirely, relying on ball movement, passing, spacing and shots off the pass — a major change from last year’s dribble-dribble-shoot mentality.
Old habits are hard to break for some, as guard Amauri Hardy shot off the dribble multiple times, something Oztelberger was sure to address.
“He’s very detailed, which is good,” guard Elijah Mitrou-Long told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “You don’t want a coach to not be detailed because little things can win a game and little things can lose a game.”
The Rebels will look to defeat California in a short turnaround, after playing Saturday afternoon of the Veterans Day holiday weekend. Hardy scored a career-high 27 points against the Wildcats and leads the Runnin’ Rebels in scoring so far this season with 21.0 points per game.
The Rebels came out strong, posting a 10-point lead midway through the first half. Kansas State finally tied the game with 11:49 to go in the game thanks to an Antonio Gordon dunk. Wildcat Xavier Sneed dropped in a mid-range jumper from the baseline with 28 seconds to play in overtime to give K-State the 56-54 lead, a lead it would never relinquish. UNLV committed 25 turnovers, with Kansas State capitalizing with scoring 19 points off the giveaways.
“They’re one of the best defensive teams in the country,” Otzelberger said. “We probably need more ball movement, but they’re a top five defensive team in the country. It’s really impressive to hold a Big 12 champion program we have a lot of respect for to 16 first half points. We have to do better coming out and starting the second half.”
California (1-0) also boasts a new head coach in Mark Fox. The Golden Bears opened its season with an 87-71 home win over Pepperdine Nov. 5 as Matt Bradley led the way by scoring 18 of his career-high 25 points in the second half, proving he’ll be a major factor in tonight’s matchup. The sophomore converted 5-of-7 from beyond the arc against the Waves and was bolstered by Andre Kelly’s double-double (16 points, 10 rebounds) and Grant Anticevich, who grabbed a career-best 10 rebounds.
Tuesday’s game will be televised on Pac-12 Networks with Guy Haberman and Ben Braun calling the action. Jon Sandler, former Runnin’ Rebel Curtis Terry and Steve Cofield will handle the UNLV radio call, which air live on ESPN Radio 1100 in Las Vegas and online via the UNLVGameday App and TuneIn.
