Nevada Basketball: 2017-18 season preview

MILWAUKEE, WI - MARCH 16: A Nevada Wolf Pack fan holds a flag in the first half against the Iowa State Cyclones during the first round of the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at BMO Harris Bradley Center on March 16, 2017 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images) /

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MILWAUKEE, WI – MARCH 16: A Nevada Wolf Pack fan holds a flag in the first half against the Iowa State Cyclones during the first round of the 2017 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at BMO Harris Bradley Center on March 16, 2017 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images) /

The Nevada Wolf Pack are the reigning Mountain West Conference champions. With an entirely different roster, will the results still be the same?

In what has been a couple of down years for the Mountain West conference, the league as a whole has been relegated to just one bid. Last season the bid went to the Nevada Wolf Pack, who are coached by Eric Musselman.

The top offense in the league by a mile, the team was led by three players: Marcus Marshall (19.7 ppg), Cameron Oliver (16.0 ppg), and Jordan Caroline (15.0 ppg). While the team together had defensive issues, their offense was too much for many of their opponents. It was their offense that provided one of the biggest comebacks ever — the game in The Pit against New Mexico.

Down 25 points in the second half, the Wolf Pack staged the eighth largest second-half comeback in NCAA history. After a barrage of difficult three-pointers by Marshall to take the game into OT, Caroline made a go-ahead three of his own to seal the victory.

With Marshall and Oliver both gone, a normal team would just take a year to rebuild and reload. But Coach Musselman was long prepared for this year, with four high-major transfers eligible to play this season after this last one out. Many of these players are expected to either start or contribute heavily off the bench.

There’s a legit possibility that the Mountain West could once again be a one-bid league again, so the transfers better get going early so the Wolf Pack can go for the at-large invite.