LAS CRUCES, N.M. -- Fresno State basketball coach Steve Cleveland is looking for some extra help.
And why not? His Bulldogs were outgunned and outmanned in the regular season twice by Nevada, including a 76-63 win in Fresno last Saturday. Now, they have to play the No. 2-seeded Wolf Pack again in a quarterfinal game of the Western Athletic Conference Tournament at Pan American Center at 5 p.m. today.
Cleveland expects New Mexico State fans to hop on the Bulldogs' bandwagon, at least for a day, in hopes that Fresno State can knock off Nevada and their Aggies can avoid a possible semifinal matchup against the Pack.
"I think there's a great energy any time you get to a conference tournament," Cleveland said Wednesday. "If we can keep the game competitive in the first half, we will probably have 9,000 fans.
"Nevada has really taken it to New Mexico State at home and on the road. I suppose if it's a competitive game we will have quite a few more fans."
Nevada, which is 20-10 overall and tied Utah State, New Mexico State and Boise State for the WAC regular-season title, is an eight-point favorite over the No. 7-seeded Bulldogs, who are 13-18.
Both Cleveland and Nevada's Mark Fox said they will make some adjustments from last Saturday's game.
"I don't think we can play this game the way we did there," Fox said Wednesday. "I didn't like the shot selection in the first half. Everybody was trying for the home run basket. We took a lot of shots we hadn't taken for a while. Eventually, we calmed down."
The Pack's emphasis in practice this week has been on taking the right shots.
"They didn't need to be told there were questionable shots," Fox said "They saw it on film for themselves."
Fox cautioned that what worked offensively for the Pack might not be as effective in today's game.
Marcelus Kemp led Nevada with 25 points and JaVale McGee had 23 points and 14 bounds in the game in Fresno. They combined for 34 of the Pack's 40 points in the second half.
"Those two guys obviously will attract some extra attention," Fox said.
That extra attention could open things for Armon Johnson, who was named the WAC freshman of the year last Sunday, and sophomore Brandon Fields. They were held in check last Saturday with Fields scoring eight points and Johnson, who battled foul trouble, finishing with five points.
"I got sped up a little bit. I rushed my shots," Fields said, "I look to be productive in the tournament.
"Really, it (the tournament) is like a fresh start for everybody. Everybody is 0-0. You lose, you go home. It's really fair play for anybody. I'm excited. I'm ready."
Defensively, the Pack has been effective against the Bulldogs and particularly against Eddie Miller, who has been 2-of-14 from the 3-point line in the two games. As a team, Fresno State has hit 7-of-38 from 3-point range (18 percent) in the two games against Nevada.
"Brandon and Lyndale (Burleson) have done a nice job and Demarshay (Johnson's) ability to defend away from the basket has helped us," Fox said. "We have to defend at a high level. It was pretty good last time, but it has to be better.
"This is a new day. As well as they shoot, as much as they shoot the three, they're dangerous. They're a scary No. 7 seed."
Cleveland said he doesn't expect Nevada to make many changes because of how well it has performed against his team. Cleveland said his team made mistakes defensively in both games and didn't have attention to detail.
"We're not going to beat Nevada unless we have a full attention to detail for 40 minutes," Cleveland said. "If we can do that, we can compete with them."
Stopping the 7-foot McGee poses special problems for the undersized Bulldogs.
"It's hard. I think the key thing is that you have to get him off the block," Cleveland said, "The times we did that, he still made shots. He's a handful.
"We found no answer for Kemp. We did a better job on the two guards (Fields and Armon Johnson) at home. McGee is playing better. He keeps playing like he won't be back. That's not what Mark wants to hear."
McGee has given no indication that he would consider declaring for the NBA Draft after this season, although he has received extensive interest from scouts.
McGee is one of the reasons the Pack has won seven of its last nine games. And Fox has liked his team's preparation for this game.
"We've had a couple of good practices this week," Fox said. "I've liked their approach to practice. ... Hopefully, we'll play well."
And why not? His Bulldogs were outgunned and outmanned in the regular season twice by Nevada, including a 76-63 win in Fresno last Saturday. Now, they have to play the No. 2-seeded Wolf Pack again in a quarterfinal game of the Western Athletic Conference Tournament at Pan American Center at 5 p.m. today.
Cleveland expects New Mexico State fans to hop on the Bulldogs' bandwagon, at least for a day, in hopes that Fresno State can knock off Nevada and their Aggies can avoid a possible semifinal matchup against the Pack.
"I think there's a great energy any time you get to a conference tournament," Cleveland said Wednesday. "If we can keep the game competitive in the first half, we will probably have 9,000 fans.
"Nevada has really taken it to New Mexico State at home and on the road. I suppose if it's a competitive game we will have quite a few more fans."
Nevada, which is 20-10 overall and tied Utah State, New Mexico State and Boise State for the WAC regular-season title, is an eight-point favorite over the No. 7-seeded Bulldogs, who are 13-18.
Both Cleveland and Nevada's Mark Fox said they will make some adjustments from last Saturday's game.
"I don't think we can play this game the way we did there," Fox said Wednesday. "I didn't like the shot selection in the first half. Everybody was trying for the home run basket. We took a lot of shots we hadn't taken for a while. Eventually, we calmed down."
The Pack's emphasis in practice this week has been on taking the right shots.
"They didn't need to be told there were questionable shots," Fox said "They saw it on film for themselves."
Fox cautioned that what worked offensively for the Pack might not be as effective in today's game.
Marcelus Kemp led Nevada with 25 points and JaVale McGee had 23 points and 14 bounds in the game in Fresno. They combined for 34 of the Pack's 40 points in the second half.
"Those two guys obviously will attract some extra attention," Fox said.
That extra attention could open things for Armon Johnson, who was named the WAC freshman of the year last Sunday, and sophomore Brandon Fields. They were held in check last Saturday with Fields scoring eight points and Johnson, who battled foul trouble, finishing with five points.
"I got sped up a little bit. I rushed my shots," Fields said, "I look to be productive in the tournament.
"Really, it (the tournament) is like a fresh start for everybody. Everybody is 0-0. You lose, you go home. It's really fair play for anybody. I'm excited. I'm ready."
Defensively, the Pack has been effective against the Bulldogs and particularly against Eddie Miller, who has been 2-of-14 from the 3-point line in the two games. As a team, Fresno State has hit 7-of-38 from 3-point range (18 percent) in the two games against Nevada.
"Brandon and Lyndale (Burleson) have done a nice job and Demarshay (Johnson's) ability to defend away from the basket has helped us," Fox said. "We have to defend at a high level. It was pretty good last time, but it has to be better.
"This is a new day. As well as they shoot, as much as they shoot the three, they're dangerous. They're a scary No. 7 seed."
Cleveland said he doesn't expect Nevada to make many changes because of how well it has performed against his team. Cleveland said his team made mistakes defensively in both games and didn't have attention to detail.
"We're not going to beat Nevada unless we have a full attention to detail for 40 minutes," Cleveland said. "If we can do that, we can compete with them."
Stopping the 7-foot McGee poses special problems for the undersized Bulldogs.
"It's hard. I think the key thing is that you have to get him off the block," Cleveland said, "The times we did that, he still made shots. He's a handful.
"We found no answer for Kemp. We did a better job on the two guards (Fields and Armon Johnson) at home. McGee is playing better. He keeps playing like he won't be back. That's not what Mark wants to hear."
McGee has given no indication that he would consider declaring for the NBA Draft after this season, although he has received extensive interest from scouts.
McGee is one of the reasons the Pack has won seven of its last nine games. And Fox has liked his team's preparation for this game.
"We've had a couple of good practices this week," Fox said. "I've liked their approach to practice. ... Hopefully, we'll play well."
