UNLV Basketball: Getting the Rebels back to glory days as a program

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LAS VEGAS, NV – FEBRUARY 25: Head coach Marvin Menzies of the UNLV Rebels reacts during his team’s game against the Nevada Wolf Pack during their game at the Thomas /

What to expect in the immediate future

Menzies and the Rebels finished in last place in the conference in his first season but climbed to 7^th last season, winning 20 games and finishing 8-10 in the Mountain West. Juiston returns for his senior year but the Rebels do lose three of their other top four scorers. A couple of key returnees to keep an eye on are 6-7 forward Tervell Beck who scored over seven points a game as a freshman and averaged 11 in the last four games of the season. The team will also be looking at sophomore guard Amauri Hardy to take another step in his development, the former four-star recruit averaged five points in 19 minutes during his first year.

The recruiting class consists of three shooting guards, hometown Trey Woodbury and Bryce Hamilton out of Pasadena, CA are both 6-4 and Joel Ntambwe, even though he is 6-9 can handle the ball and develop into a playmaker for the Rebels, whom he chose over the likes of UCLA, Wichita State, and Tennessee.

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Rebuilding a program can be a process, and after 27 years of trying, the school may have finally found the man to get that process started in earnest. It may not be this season, or even next, but Menzies is on the right track, let’s just hope for the team’s sake that the school and fans are patient enough to see it through, because if they haven’t figured it out by now, Jerry Tarkanians don’t grow on trees.