How an NIT run could boost the UNLV basketball program

Steve Marcus

UNLV guard D.J. Thomas (11) takes a shot against San Jose State during the second half of an NCAA basketball game at the Thomas & Mack Center Saturday, March 2, 2024.

By Mike Grimala (contact)

Wednesday, March 20, 2024 | 2 a.m.

The UNLV men’s basketball team practiced on Monday, and that is a big development for the program because it means the season is still alive beyond the conference tournament.

When the NIT revealed its bracket on Sunday and UNLV was included, it snapped an 11-year postseason drought for the Scarlet and Gray, and while head coach Kevin Kruger conceded that “everyone wants to make the NCAA Tournament,” the team is excited about its first-round game at Princeton today.

“This is a team that played a lot of really good basketball, and knows that watching the selection show, we’re a team that’s right there,” Kruger said.

Kruger and senior wing Keylan Boone both reported that spirits were high during Monday’s session, and the team is aiming to make their postseason last as long as possible.

It may be a consolation to some, but for UNLV, the NIT could be a very good thing — and something worth celebrating.

A look at why an NIT run is beneficial for the program:

More practice time

When the UNLV football team qualified for a bowl game after the 2023 season, head coach Barry Odom noted that the extra practices allotted by the NCAA would allow the team to bridge the distance between the regular season and spring ball, and ultimately make the 2024 team better.

Basketball is a bit different — the NCAA is giving Kruger only two practices to prep for Wednesday’s game — but he still believes more court time is a good thing.

“I think getting that extra time together, playing in a game that has implications of, you win you keep playing, you lose you go home…it carries that weight that you could be done,” Kruger said. “So it provides a lot of opportunities to be in those situations and scenarios with what we feel is going to be a really strong group coming back.”

These NIT practices are not the same as the spring workouts that begin shortly after the conclusion of the NCAA Tournament. While those sessions are limited to individual skill work, UNLV is currently holding full, high-intensity practices, with a level of detail and scouting befitting a postseason game.

Freshman guard D.J. Thomas has logged more minutes than any UNLV player this season, and he is still raring to go, so that bodes well for the approach the team is taking in these extra practices.

“It’s more experience, and doing something we love,” Thomas said. “I think that will benefit us a lot.”

Senior sendoff

Five UNLV players are out of eligibility after this season, and for some of them, it could be the final time they play in a meaningful game. So there is a teamwide emphasis on making this postseason a memorable experience for the outgoing seniors.

Senior Keylan Boone said after UNLV was eliminated…