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UNLV Basketball: Notable matchups among 2022-23 non-conference games

By Tristan Freeman

Feb 19, 2022; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; UNLV Runnin' Rebels head coach Kevin Kruger during the second half against the Colorado State Rams at Thomas & Mack Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 19, 2022; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; UNLV Runnin' Rebels head coach Kevin Kruger during the second half against the Colorado State Rams at Thomas & Mack Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports /
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UNLV Basketball looks for a strong non-conference campaign this season before Mountain West play starts. Who are the key opponents to watch?

Last season’s non-conference campaign proved to be very tough for UNLV Basketball. They went 8-5 overall, with none of the losses viewed as “bad”. Two of them were to top-5 teams in Michigan and UCLA, with a heartbreaking last-second loss to Wichita State in-between. They did lose by 20+ points in back-to-back games to SMU and San Francisco on the road but the Rebels did beat Pac-12 program California at home last season.

UNLV is looking to turn down the difficult knob on the schedule, with a much more manageable slate of opponents for the upcoming season. But there are still some difficult opponents that the Mountain West program will have to deal with. Here are some notable games from this schedule.

Dayton Flyers – Nov 15th

The Flyers have a chance to be ranked in the preseason top-25 polls, returning everyone of importance on a 24-win team last season. That includes sophomores and rising stars, DaRon Holmes and Malachi Smith. After being the youngest team in the country, Dayton will be a major player and a tough task for a UNLV team that’ll still be trying to get their own chemistry together.

SoCal Challenge – Nov 21st Southern Illinois + Cal Baptist or Minnesota

On paper, UNLV should beat Southern Illinois and Minnesota should take care of Cal Baptist to set up that matchup. The Gophers will be the favorites, thanks to the frontcourt dup of Jamison Battle and Dawson Garcia. But the backcourt has more question marks and the Rebels could take advantage and make this a game and potentially pull off the upset.

at San Diego – Dec 3rd

The Rebels won last year’s matchup in Vegas by 23 points but expect this one to be much closer. New head coach Steve Lavin has brought in a pair of Pac-12 transfers in Eric Williams (Oregon) and Jaiden Delaire (Stanford). The Toreros will be better on paper and with this being on their home court, could get some revenge.

Washington State – Dec 10th

The Cougars lost a lot of production this offseason, including most of their key guards and big man Efe Abogidi. But forward Mouhamed Gueye is back, along with a pair of transfer guards in Justin Powell and Jabe Mullins. There are a lot of questions with that backcourt and if they don’t work out well, could be the worst team in the Pac-12 not named California. That presents an opportunity for UNLV to get back-to-back non-con victories two years running.

Next. Strength/weakness of each top-25 team. dark

San Francisco – Dec 17th

The Dons don’t have their head coach Todd Golden anymore, or their star guard Jamaree Bouyea. But they still have quality guard Khalil Shabazz back, along with Washington State transfer Tyrell Roberts and Texas A&M transfer Marcus Williams. They won’t be as good as last year’s at-large squad but they’ll still be formidable in the non-con.