Grading the Wolf Pack: Nevada offense diversifies against Fresno State

Grading the Nevada Wolf Pack’s 73-57 and 79-65 victories over the Fresno State Bulldogs last week at Lawlor Events Center . . .

STARTERS

Grant Sherfield: A+

The most important player in the Mountain West controlled both games last week against the young Fresno State Bulldogs. Sherfield, a sophomore who plays like a fifth-year senior, scored 23 and 27 points with 12 assists, eight rebounds and five threes in the two games combined, playing 70 of the 80 minutes. Sherfield was a perfect 10-of-10 from the line on Sunday after getting to the line for just two free throws on Friday. The sophomore was also 12-of-18 on shots inside the arc in the series.

Desmond Cambridge: B

Cambridge crashed the boards against Fresno State, pulling down 19 rebounds in the two games. The junior also contributed eight assists. Cambridge didn’t light up the scoreboard on offense, making just 9-of-22 shots, but he was a solid 5-of-13 on threes, scoring 25 points in the two games. He still doesn’t get to the line nearly enough (just 2-of-2 in the series and 23-of-26 all season in 15 games) and he turned the ball over six times. But his work on the boards salvaged his weekend very nicely.

Warren Washington: C+

It is always a mixed bag with the 7-foot sophomore as he gets his first consistent playing time as a Division I player. Washington was solid and productive inside on offense, shooting 9-of-17 in the two games for 22 points in 49 minutes. But while he had seven rebounds in 25 minutes on Friday, he came back two days later and had just one board in 24 minutes on Sunday. He also was called for seven fouls in the two games (a problem that just won’t go away) and turned the ball over three times.

Tre Coleman: C

Coleman recovered nicely on Sunday after struggling on Friday. The 6-7 freshman didn’t score in 26 minutes (taking just two shots) on Friday, though he did have six rebounds. Coleman, though, saved his weekend on Sunday by becoming more aggressive. He scored 11 points on 4-of-7 shooting and also had four rebounds in 27 minutes as the Pack closed out the two-game sweep. Coleman’s continued aggressiveness on offense could be a key to the Pack’s success in the postseason.

Zane Meeks: D

Meeks played just 15 minutes against Fresno State after getting ejected on Friday. The sophomore scored five points in his start (he didn’t play on Sunday) but also turned the ball over three times and was called for three fouls. Meeks has scored just 17 points and has been called for 12 fouls over his last three games and has not gotten to the free throw line once.

Robby Robinson: C

Robinson started on Sunday (in Meeks’ absence) and, well, didn’t give the Pack much production. He had just two points and two rebounds and was called for three fouls in his 15 minutes. It was his first start of the season. Robinson, who started all 31 games last season, now has just 22 rebounds over his last nine games in 109 total minutes after pulling down 37 boards in his first five games over 96 minutes. Robinson has nearly three times as many fouls (19) as points (seven) over his last nine games.

BENCH

K.J. Hymes: B

The 6-10 sophomore gave the Wolf Pack two productive performances off the bench. Hymes scored 13 points over 32 minutes in the two games, making 5-of-10 shots and grabbing five rebounds. Yes, of course, the officials were all over him as usual, calling him for four fouls in each game. But Hymes also stayed on the floor long enough to block three shots, make 3-of-4 free throws, grab a steal and dish out three assists in the two games.

Kane Milling: C

Milling got a ton of minutes off the bench in the two games, playing 62 minutes. That was just two minutes short of Cambridge’s workload and more than anyone else on the team other than Sherfield. What did the Pack get for those 62 minutes? Well, 14 points on 4-of-9 shooting (1-of-4 on threes), two assists, three turnovers and four rebounds.

DeAndre Henry: B

Henry gave the Pack a very productive 13 minutes on Sunday (he didn’t play Friday), scoring six points on 3-of-4 shooting with two rebounds, two assists and a steal. And, yes, he also found enough time to get called for three fouls. The 6-7 freshman might be in line for some more minutes very soon. In just 78 total minutes this year he has been a sparkling 13-of-19 from the floor for 29 points and 11 rebounds.

Alem Huseinovic: Incomplete

The 6-4 freshman got into both games against Fresno State but played just 11 total minutes, scoring three points on a 3-pointer. He has played just 12 total minutes over his last three appearances after playing 50 minutes over his previous four games.

Robby Robinson: C

Robinson actually played more minutes (16) off the bench on Friday than he did as a starter on Sunday (15). The production, at least on the stat sheet, was basically the same. He had one point, a block and three rebounds in 16 minutes on Friday off the bench as well as three fouls. Robinson’s value to the Pack, it must be noted, cannot be found on the stat sheet. He is there to eat up minutes, giving Hymes and Washington some rest and making sure the two sophomores don’t foul out in the first half of every game.

Coaching: A

Alford, it seems, made sure that the Wolf Pack contained Fresno’s 7-foot sophomore Orlando Robinson and that was enough to beat the Bulldogs. Robinson was mediocre in the two games, scoring 15 points each night with just 14 rebounds and one block in the two games combined. He also had eight turnovers and was awful (10-of-17) from the line. Credit Hymes, Washington and Robby Robinson for keeping the former Las Vegas high school product in check. Fresno never made enough shots to put up much of a fight. The Pack led by double digits for basically the entire second half of both games and Alford could have coached both of these games via Zoom.

Overall: A

We don’t know if this was by design or simply a product of both games being glorified scrimmages in the second half on both nights. But it was nice to see the rest of the roster at least catch up to Sherfield and Cambridge on the offensive end. The Pack’s Dynamic Duo had scored far more than half (162-of-279, 58 percent) of the team’s points over the four previous games. Against Fresno State that was down to 49 percent (75-of-152). Continued offensive development by everyone on the roster not named Sherfield or Cambridge will be an indication of how much this team is improving.