Wolf Pack corner UI for 6th straight win

RENO, Nev. – Marcelus Kemp scored 22 points and Nick Fazekas added 19 points and 11 rebounds Saturday night to lead No. 21 Nevada to an 81-55 victory over Idaho.

Kemp shot 8 of 13 from the field and Fazekas hit 7 of 8 for the defending Western Athletic Conference champion Wolf Pack (13-1, 1-0), who went on a 20-6 run late in the first half and shot 57 percent on the game en route to their sixth straight victory since their lone loss to rival UNLV.

Keoni Watson was the lone scorer in double figures with 19 for the Vandals (2-12, 0-2), who were outrebounded 45-26 and shot 31 percent from the field.

Nevada led 46-28 at the half and by as much as 32 – 80-48 on JaVale McGee’s dunk off a pass from Lyndale Burleson with 4 minutes remaining.

Fazekas, a 6-foot-11 senior, moved past Josh Grant (Utah 1988-93) into eighth place on the WAC’s all-time rebounding list with 1,072. It was his 11th double-double of the season and 52nd of his career.

Kyle Shiloh, Ramon Sessions, Brandon Fields and David Ellis each scored seven points for the Wolf Pack, who are off to their best start in 55 years and are 52-6 at home since the start of the 2003-04 season.

Fazekas scored eight consecutive points for Nevada early in the second half – three in a row off rebounds – and Kemp sandwiched a pair of three-point plays around Ellis’ hook shot for a 66-37 lead with 13:37 left in the game. The lead grew to 78-45 when Ellis converted a three-point play then Burleson scored on a break off a pass from Shiloh at 6:56.

Kemp scored nine points in the first 7 minutes of the game, including two 3-pointers.

Watson followed a three-point play with a drive to the hoop to pull to 19-14 at 11:29.

Nevada 81, Idaho 55

Idaho (2-12, 0-2)—C.Johnson 1-3 0-0 3, Watson 6-16 5-6 19, Avworo 2-4 0-0 4, Nagle 2-12 1-1 6, Jackson 1-3 0-0 2, Crowell 2-4 0-0 6, Webb 2-6 3-4 8, M.Johnson 1-2 1-1 3, Morris 2-5 0-0 4, Nwoke 0-6 0-0 0. Totals 19-61 10-12 55.

Nevada (13-1, 1-0)—Shiloh 3-7 0-0 7, Kemp 8-13 4-5 22, Sessions 2-4 2-2 7, Ikovlev 1-3 0-0 3, Fazekas 7-8 4-4 19, Fields 3-6 0-0 7, Burleson 1-2 0-0 2, LaGrone 0-1 0-2 0, Hanson 1-3 0-0 2, Phillips 0-0 0-2 0, Ellis 3-5 1-1 7, McGee 1-1 2-5 4, Lynch 0-0 1-2 1. Totals 30-53 14-23 81.

Halftime—Nevada 46, Idaho 28. 3-point goals—Idaho 7-21 (Crowell 2-3, Watson 2-6, C.Johnson 1-2, Webb 1-3, Nagle 1-5, M.Johnson 0-1, Morris 0-1), Nevada 7-15 (Kemp 2-6, Sessions 1-1, Fields 1-1, Ikovlev 1-1, Fazekas 1-2, Shiloh 1-3, Burleson 0-1). Fouled out—None. Rebounds—Idaho 26 (Webb 5), Nevada 45 (Fazekas 11). Assists—Idaho 11 (Avworo 5), Nevada 17 (Shiloh 5). Total fouls—Idaho 17, Nevada 16. A—9,081.