While Marcus Marshall is the playmaker for Nevada, the member of the Wolf Pack you’re most likely to see on the evening highlights is Cameron Oliver, the high-flying wing nearing the end of his sophomore season. Oliver’s 6-foot-8 frame is sturdy enough to handle NBA defenders right now, and the only thing separating him from the very best at his position has been consistency.
Not anymore, though. Oliver’s 19 points and 11 rebounds in Nevada’s 83-69 quarterfinal win over Utah State is par for the course now. Over his past 10 games prior to that, he’d been averaging 18.5 points and 10.3 rebounds per contest, a significant jump from the 14.3 points and 7.6 rebounds he’d averaged in his first 19 games this year.
So that makes seven double-doubles in his last eleven. And he’s doing it without sacrificing any of the highlight-film plays that have drawn more than the usual NBA attention on the Mountain West Conference this year.
With Oliver playing this well and Marshall still controlling games, don’t expect Nevada to exit the NCAA Tournament quietly.
”I think postseason, this is crunch time,” Oliver said. “This is crunch time. Anything can happen in tournaments.”
