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The Nevada Wolf Pack cap off its two-game series versus the Fresno State Bulldogs Sunday at 1 p.m. PST on CBS Sports Network. Nevada has won seven straight against Fresno State.
Nevada took the opening game Friday, 73-57 — snapping Fresno State’s three-game winning streak. Its 16-point victory was the second-largest victory it’s had against a Division-I opponent this year. The 57 points allowed was the third time a Mountain West opponent failed to reach 60 points against the Pack defense this year.
The Wolf Pack are 9-5 with the 4th-best conference record at 4-3. Fresno State is 5-4 and rank No. 6 in the Mountain West at 3-4.
Nevada (9-5, 4-3) vs. Fresno State (5-4, 3-4)
When: Sunday Jan. 17, at 1 p.m. PST
Where: Lawlor Events Center in Reno, Nev.
TV: CBS Sports Network
Online: CBS Sports Network
Matchup history: Nevada leads 59-44
Last meeting: Nevada won 73-57 (Jan. 15, 2021)
Breakdown:
Fresno State is No. 7 (among 11 teams) in the Mountain West in scoring (72 ppg) and field goal percentage (.444) and second-worst in 3-point percentage (.300). In seven Mountain West games, they are averaging just 69.0 points on 43.4 percent shooting with a dismal 28.7 3-point percentage.
Orlando Robinson leads the team in scoring at 17.8 points and 10.1 rebounds per game. Though he did not record one in the first matchup, Robinson has been a double-double machine, totaling six in the team’s first nine games. He is also averaging over a steal and block per game. Robinson is the only forward in the nation (Hayden Brown - Citadel) to average a 17 point-10 rebound-one steal-one block per game stat line.
The 7-footer has been able to stretch the floor this year, hitting half of his 3-point attempts. He is shooting 50.9 percent on the year.
In the first matchup versus Nevada, Robinson tallied 15 points with six rebounds, netting five of his 12 field goal attempts.
Deon Stroud is second in scoring (13.1 ppg) and third in rebounding (3.3 rpg). He is shooting just 49.4 percent and 46.4 percent from beyond the arc. Stroud started Friday — his third start of the season — tallying just seven points on 3-of-10 shooting.
Isaiah Hill is the team’s final double figure scorer at 11.3 points per game, netting 47.4 percent of their shots and 35.5 percent from beyond the arc. He is the team’s main distributor, averaging 3.3 assists per game.
The Wolf Pack trails Fresno State in scoring (71.1 ppg) and field goal percentage (.443), but have measured better in overall efficiency. Nevada is making 35.3 percent of its 3-point attempts and sport a 51.2 effective field goal percentage compared to Fresno State’s 50.1 percent.
It ranks among the top-3 in the Mountain West in scoring defense in its first seven conference games — surrendering just 63.4 points per game.
Grant Sherfield is atop the Pack in points (18.1), assists (5.5) and steals (1.7). On Friday, Sherfield recorded his fifth consecutive 20-point performance, totaling 23 points on 9-of-15 shooting. The 6-foot-2 guard is shooting 44.5 percent from the floor and 42.2 percent from deep.
In conference play, Sherfield is tallying 18.7 points and 5.9 assists per game on 45.2 percent shooting with a 40.5 3-point percentage.
Desmond Cambridge rounds out Nevada’s double-digit scorers at 15.4 points per contest, shooting 39.7 percent with a 35.1 3-point percentage. He leads the conference in total 3-point makes (30) and 3-point attempts (114), while placing in the top-3 in field goal attempts (194) and field goals (77).
Prediction:
- Nevada: 77
- Fresno State: 67
Entering the first matchup, Fresno State was top-2 in the conference in both offensive rebounding (14.1 orpg) and rebound margin (plus-9.1). The Wolf Pack did a good job of limiting the Bulldogs to one possession, holding them to just seven offensive rebounds and outrebounded them 37-26 — one of Nevada’s best rebounding performances of the year. Nevada will have to replicate that team effort and continue to limit Robinson’s production to win this game. After shooting just 37.5 percent and tally 57 points on Friday — both ranking as its second-worst marks of the season — I expect Fresno State to have a better game offensively Sunday. Season record: 11-3
Projected Starters:
No. 5 Nevada Wolf Pack (16-9, 10-7)
| Position | Number | Name | Class | Height | PPG | RPG | APG | FG% | 3P% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Number | Name | Class | Height | PPG | RPG | APG | FG% | 3P% |
| G | 25 | Grant Sherfield | Soph. | 6-2 | 18.3 | 3.7 | 6.1 | 43.5 | 36.9 |
| G | 4 | Desmond Cambridge | Jr. | 6-4 | 16.3 | 4.4 | 2.4 | 41.6 | 35.4 |
| G | 14 | Tre Coleman | Fr. | 6-7 | 5.7 | 3.0 | 1.8 | 42.5 | 37.1 |
| F | 20 | Daniel Foster | Fr. | 6-6 | 4.3 | 2.6 | 1.5 | 48.6 | 45.5 |
| F | 5 | Warren Washington | Soph. | 7-0 | 9.6 | 5.8 | 0.8 | 57.4 | ------ (0-1) |
Fresno State (5-4, 3-4)
| Position | Number | Name | Class | Height | PPG | RPG | APG | FG% | 3P% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Number | Name | Class | Height | PPG | RPG | APG | FG% | 3P% |
| G | 3 | Isaiah Hill | Soph. | 6-0 | 11.3 | 2.0 | 3.3 | 47.4 | 35.5 |
| G | 5 | Jordan Campbell | Soph. | 6-4 | 6.6 | 3.4 | 0.5 | 46.5 | 26.7 |
| G | 13 | Deon Stroud | Jr. | 6-5 | 13.1 | 3.3 | 0.6 | 49.4 | 46.4 |
| F | 11 | Christian Gray | Soph. | 6-6 | 6.1 | 4.1 | 0.7 | 62.5 | ——- |
| F | 10 | Orlando Robinson | Soph. | 7-0 | 17.8 | 10.1 | 2.2 | 50.9 | 50.0 |
Additional links:
Nevada game notes: https://bit.ly/3nQl4I3
Fresno State game notes: https://bit.ly/3oUM5vl
Live Stats: https://bit.ly/3bOvQw3