Nevada had a real scare in the last game the played against an inferior New Mexico team. How will they do against a really good Wyoming team?
Date and time: Wednesday, Jan. 3 at 10:30 p.m. ET
TV schedule: CBS Sports Network
Arena: Lawlor Event Arena in Boise, Idaho.
Nevada 13-3 (2-0) has been the cream of the crop in the Mountain West for the past couple of seasons. This year has been more of the same, with the Wolf Pack making themselves a top contender for an at-large bid just in case they fail to win the conference tournament.
In the first edition of Busting Brackets’s Bracketology, Nevada was placed on the 9 seed line. That puts the Wolf Pack in decent position for an at-large berth, but a bad loss will quickly put them in the danger zone.
That almost happened this past Saturday in a home game against New Mexico, with the team battling both illness and rebounding issues before surviving a pair of 3-point attempts to tie the game by the Lobos. Caleb Martin was back in the starting lineup and rewarded coach Musselman with 24 points.
The play of Caleb, along with his brother Cody, has been key to the Wolf Pack’s stay at the top of the Mountain West power structure, but it’s been Jordan Caroline who continues to propel this team. He had 21 points and 10 boards in the last game and averages 17 and 9 for the season.
But he’ll have a fight on his hands against another forward who puts up great numbers in this game. Senior Hayden Dalton had the best overall performance of the weekend in this league, dropping a career-high 36 points and 15 boards in the 82-69 home win for Wyoming 10-4 (1-0) over San Diego State. He along with Cody Kelley, who had four made 3-pointers in the game himself, helped the Cowboys combine for 12 long balls in the win.
Wyoming may not be in the conversation of an at-large bid themselves, but this team is certainly a threat to win the conference tournament in March. The battle between Caroline and Dalton will grab the headlines, but watch for both the Martin twins take on the second best player for Wyoming in Justin James, who averages 16.0 ppg in his own right.
Next: Mountain West rankings after first set of league games
If this game was in Laramie, I’d go with the Cowboys, but with this game being in Reno and the Wolf Pack coming off a sub-par performance for their high standards, I’d look for a nice bounce-back game for them in what should be a high-scoring affair to cap off a great night of basketball on Wednesday.
Prediction: Nevada 87 – Wyoming 76
Bonus prediction: Martin twins combine for 40+ points and 20+ rebounds