With their exhibition game in the books and the non-conference season about to start, Andrew Maurins offers his thoughts on what the theme of this year’s men’s basketball team should be.

“Ah, Kirk, my old friend, do you know the Klingon proverb that tells us revenge is a dish that is best served cold? It is very cold in space.”

So said the titular villain of “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan” on the subject of his nemesis, Admiral James T. Kirk.

And that has to be at least a little similar to what the Wolf Pack basketball team is feeling as they head into this season: eager to prove their mettle after seeing the program’s streak of 20-win campaigns and postseason appearances come to an abrupt end. Eager to put other teams on notice that they’re no longer “taking their lumps” or “being shown the ropes.”

One recurring theme of the realignment apocalypse currently laying waste to collegiate athletic conferences is the outgoing team having to take the best shots of all the members being left behind. If you want a firsthand account or three of this phenomenon, look no further than Nevada’s own Chris Ault. He’s been through enough conference changes, both as a coach and athletic director, to write a book on how to confront them.

But why is it you never hear about the former flagship program trying to reclaim some of its lost mojo? Why not do what Tony LaRussa did and go out on top after proving everyone wrong one last time?

When they speak to the media, you won’t hear many members of the Nevada basketball team talk about revenge. But within the secrecy of the locker room, you can bet those players and coaches feel they have something extra to prove to their opponents. They experience the most anguish whenever they hear “13-19″ and they see the banners hanging in the Lawlor Events Center rafters during every practice. More than the rest of us often realize, they understand the legacy they’ve been entrusted to uphold.

Revenge keeps old wounds fresh. Like an infection festering with the passage of time, it makes healing and forgiveness all but impossible. It sharpens general malcontent and unhappiness into a blunt weapon of single-minded determination. It brushes aside distractions in favor of one dominant objective, and sometimes admittedly at the expense of more important things. But it can also provide motivation, purpose, and a tangible “Never again” to look back on with disgust. And when you are joined in this quest — say by a group of your teammates and comrades, for example — that power is exponentially multiplied.

Revenge is the enemy of complacency. It can help shed twenty pounds if you’re Malik Story, or pack on a similar amount of weight if you’re Jerry Evans Jr.. It can transform Dario Hunt’s free throws from physics-defying monstrosities to testaments of perseverance. When channeled towards constructive ends, there are few limits to what revenge can help accomplish.

The other seven WAC coaches recognized the power of revenge when they predicted Nevada would win the conference a few weeks ago. But like most prognostications in the world of sports journalism, it’s merely lip service and not indicative of all the hard work that goes into a championship-winning season. That’s where coach David Carter’s work will begin, funneling all those different personalities and skill sets into a cohesive unit with one goal. And if they so choose, they can tap the considerable revenge reserve last season so generously provided for them and show the rest of the WAC just how cold it can get in Reno.