In the third game of the day at the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Tournament quarterfinals, Nevada squared off against the Idaho Vandals for the third time this season.  To no one’s surprise, the result was the same as the first two as Nevada won 87-71.

The one-two punch of Armon Johnson and Luke Babbitt came in averaging 20.0 points per game each for the Pack in the two games against Idaho earlier this year and they came out hot.  Babbitt had 11 points at halftime and along with Johnson’s eight points the Pack had a 47-34 lead.

“We used the home court advantage to our advantage,” Babbitt said of his teams’ first half performance.  Babbitt set the tone early banging a three pointer in the first minute as the Silver and Blue dominated the first half, opening the game on a 13-2 run.

“If we lose the season’s over and we know that and we came out with great energy,” Babbitt added.

Providing a spark off the bench for the Pack was senior guard Ray Kraemer.  Kraemer, who scored 14 in the first game against the Vandals but only 3 in the second match-up, was solid in this game with 9 points. The native Texan hit back to back three’s to give Nevada a 21-12 lead as the Pack were draining just about everything early.

In fact, Nevada went 7-13 from beyond the arc and shot nearly 61 percent from the field in the first half.  David Carter’s club also played excellent defensively, not committing a foul for the first ten minutes of the game as the hot hands continued to shoot.

Fields was energetic once again for the Pack

Joey Shaw hit back to back three’s to give the Pack an eleven point lead and Brandon Fields pushed the lead up to 14 after Nevada scored eight straight points.  The highlight play of the 8-0 run was an outstanding reverse slam on a steal as Fields sent the fans at the Lawlor Center into an uproar.

Meanwhile, Idaho looked like a team that hadn’t practiced as they committed turnover after turnover in the first half.  The lone bright spot for the Vandals in the first half was Luciano De Souza, who scored 13 points by showing his range. He hit 3-of-4 from beyond the arc and finished with 20 points for Idaho.

“He’s a tough match-up, especially when he’s hitting the long ball,” Coach Carter said of the 6-foot-7 Idaho forward.

The second-half started the same way the first half started, with a basket from All-WAC first teamer and WAC Player of the Year Luke Babbitt, as the Pack put the pedal to the metal and pulled away.  Babbitt finished with 21 points and 7 rebounds.

Fields reverse electrified the Silver and Blue faithful

“It was important to stretch the lead out,” said Nevada guard Brandon Fields of the halftime adjustments the Pack made.

Dario Hunt had a pair of thunderous two-handed slams that helped Nevada open up a 19-point second half lead by the score of 57-38. The sophomore big man finished the game with 12 points and 7 boards.

The Pack extended the lead to 20 when Joey Shaw converted a layup after a foul and hit the free throw, making it 77 to push the Silver and Blue lead to 75-55.  Shaw would finish with 14 points for Nevada, as the Pack simply dominated the second half. There really wasn’t a lot excitement for the fans down the stretch, but one moment that got everyone out of their seats was a hard foul on Babbitt by Idaho forward Marvin Jefferson.

Babbitt was fouled on a dribble, jumped to take a shot and without releasing the ball was struck again by Jefferson.  Words were exchanged between the two but Babbitt would sink two free throws to extend the lead to 81-60.

With 2:30 remaining Nevada pulled their starters as they would hold off a late Idaho charge for the 87-71 victory which was complete when London Giles skied to block a last second layup at the buzzer.

All five Wolf Pack starters finished with double figures with Babbitt leading the way as Nevada won its seventh game in a row at the friendly confines of the Lawlor Center.  However, it will take two more wins to get into the NCAA Tournament.

“This team is peaking right now and the best is yet to come,” said an optimistic Coach Carter when asked about the next game.  “It’s all mental at this point and I’m going to have my guys ready to go,” Carter added.

Nevada will take on New Mexico State on Saturday night with a tip-off scheduled for 8:30 PM.