I love Black Friday - there’s just something about the thought of  rabid grandmothers beating each other with Tickle Me Elmo toys to get to the cash register first that brings a smile to my face.

Many of you are probably finishing up a long day of wading through waves of people in search of the perfect Christmas gift - I spent the day sitting on my parents’ couch in Wells, Nevada, population 1,300ish - so here’s some advice on where to shop for that Wolf Pack fan in the family.

Common knowledge would say head for the ASUN Bookstore at The Joe, but the current selection of Nevada gear falls somewhere between embarrassing and Dane Cook.

If you’re looking for name brand stuff (in sports gear that means Nike and Adidas) check out Silver and Blue Outfitters.

They’ve got the best selection of Wolf Pack gear, and you don’t even have to worry about taking a plush toy or a video game console to the head to buy something.

Blame Nevada coach Chris Ault for Friday’s 28-26 loss against No. 16 Hawaii.

The Wolf Pack went down on a 45-yard field goal from Hawaii kicker Dan Kelly with less than 10 seconds left in the game, but there was no reason the kick left so little time on the clock – or for the kick to have happened at all, for that matter.

Ault made two mistakes with his timeouts that cost the Wolf Pack a chance to win.
The critical error came with less than 45 seconds left in the game.

After taking over at the 12 yard line with 2:16 left in the game, backup quarterback Tyler Graunke led the Rainbow Warriors down the field and into field goal position. The Wolf Pack’s defense stepped up and held Hawaii to five yards on third and 10, bringing up Kelly’s try from 45-yards.

But instead of using one of the Wolf Pack’s two timeouts to stop the clock and leave his own offense with enough time on the clock to move up field, Ault waited to freeze Kelly.
Twice.

He took the first timeout with 15 seconds. Then, just before Kelly snuck his first attempt over the crossbars, Ault called the Wolf Pack’s second timeout. Kelly then came back and drilled his second attempt.

Ault had no control over Kelly’s fortitude, and debating whether the timeout actually helped him gather himself, rather than forcing him to rush onto the field and get off a kick quickly, is a different debate entirely.

The baffling part is how Ault handicapped his offense.

Sure, freshman quarterback Colin Kaepernick struggled and the offense failed to convert in a few situations in the forth quarter, but, given the probable good field position after a squib kick, 40 seconds or so would have been plenty of time for the Wolf Pack to have gone back down the field and set up its own game-winning chance.

Of course, the Wolf Pack wouldn’t have had those extra seconds had Ault not made his first timeout mistake.

Ault’s first gaff came with 3:10 left in the game when he called a timeout without letting the play clock run all the way down before a crucial third down play.

The Wolf Pack defense had just stopped the Rainbow Warriors on a critical fourth down, and the offense had the ball to take time off the clock.

But, after Brandon Fragger rushed for four yards on second and nine, Ault called the Wolf Pack’s first timeout of the half.

The Pack had three to burn, so Ault had good reason to burn a timeout to straighten out his offense – even if it was just to set up a run up the middle.

The Wolf Pack was trying to run the clock down, so why take a timeout when the play clock was still north of 15 seconds?

That timeout made no sense and put extra pressure on the defense.

To get one thing straight, the Wolf Pack’s normally porous defense played a hell of game.
Heisman Trophy candidate Colt Brennan was out. Whatever.

The Wolf Pack made several big stops, prevented big plays, and man did it lay some hits.

If Ault knew before the game his defense would hold the Rainbow Warriors to 28 points – they average almost 50 a game this season – he’d have to have liked his chances to pull the upset.

In the end, though, Friday’s game is just another close call in a season of missed opportunities.

With so much youth on offense, a 5-5 record at this point of the season was a reasonable prediction.

But the Wolf Pack should have beaten Northwestern, Boise State, and now Hawaii.

How much better would the season look with those three wins on the schedule?

The Wolf Pack may still go to a bowl game, but the biggest memories from this season will be the near upsets.

Ault has had a long and successful career based on his ability to win football games. On Friday, that ability was absent during the closing minutes.

Game over -  Wolf Pack 67- Santa Clara 54.  The Wolf Pack dominated the second half, leading by as many as 18. Curry Lynch and Adam Carp got in the game for the closing minutes. Lynch got off one shot, but it was an airball.

Luke Babbitt, a potential McDonald’s All-American who signed a national letter of intent with the Wolf Pack on Wednesday, was in the stands to watch his future team.

4:00 Second Half - Welcome to the Marcelus Kemp explosion. Kemp’s scored 16 points in the second half and the Wolf Pack leads 59-44. The Broncos have had to work hard for every basket in the second half while the Wolf pack has spaced the floor and created some easy opportunities.

8:46 Second Half - A quick seven point run by the Broncos cut the Wolf Pack’s lead to 43-38.

14:04 Second Half - Kemp scored five quick points to give the Wolf Pack a double-digit lead at 39-27. The team really feeds of Kemp when he’s scoring.

15:18 Second Half - The Wolf Pack leads 34-17 and is suffocating the Broncos. Coach Fox gave his first floor-stomps of the home season and the Wolf Pack responded by forcing three turnovers and a couple bad shots.

Guard Brandon Fields is giving the Broncos real problems going to the basket and either finishing at the rim or dishing on the drive. He’s scored four points and set up another easy basket. Fields game is strongest when he slashing rather than settling for the jumper.

Half Time - Wolf Pack 26, Broncos 25
John Bryant hit a short jumper with eight seconds left in the half to pull the Broncos within one point. The Wolf Pack’s defense has been pretty tight, but the Broncos have converted whenever they’ve gotten open looks from deep. They hit five 3-pointers in the half.

The Wolf Pack struggled to find good shots on offense. Demarshay Johnson scored eight points to lead the Wolf Pack. Kemp scored seven in the first six minutes, but then didn’t score over the last 14 minutes. The Wolf Pack needs to get out and run in the second half to make things a little easier on the offense - the Pack just isn’t real efficient at scoring in the half court offene right now.
1:10 First Half - The Broncos just puled within 25-23 on a 3-pointer by Mitch Henke. The Wolf Pack is struggling to create good looks.

5:22 First Half - Wolf Pack leads 23-17. After scoring a quick seven points to start the game, Kemp has sort of disappeared. He’s missed a couple open looks. Kemp has really struggled from the field this season trying to adjust to his new role as the Wolf Pack’s go-to guy. It might take him a couple weeks to adjust to the extra attention he’s getting.

7:10 First Half - The Wolf Pack leads 19-15. Demarshay Johnson and Kemp both have seven points. The offense hasn’t found a rhythm yet - the Wolf Pack is taking a lot of contested, quick shots. Luckily, the defense is locking down the Broncos for the most part.

12:06 First Half - Curry time is over.

12:55 First Half - The Wolf Pack leads 15-8 and it’s Curry Lynch time. The student section is loving

15:54 First Half - Wolf Pack leads 7-5. Guard Marcelus Kemp hit his first 3-pointer of the game, which is a good sign after his first half struggles in recent games. The Wolf Pack has also picked up a couple offensive rebounds early and created some easy opportunities.

The Broncos will be a good challenge for the Pack, they actually have good size inside. The Wolf Pack is longer, but Demarshay Johnson and JaVale McGee are a few late-night Jack-in-the-Box runs short of of 7-foot, 275-pound Broncos center Josh Higgins. That’s a big boy.

About 20 minutes before tip-off. Santa Clara will be a good test for the Wolf Pack. Overall, the Wolf Pack’s schedule is much better than it was a season, and it has nothing to do with the Cal or North Carolina games.

The Wolf Pack has really strengthened the middle part of its schedule. Norfolk State has been replaced with teams like Central Florida, Colorado State, and Northern Iowa.

The Wolf Pack, if it can overcome its youth and get some early wins, will be in good position in march.

Boom

The Nevada men’s basketball team’s 63-60 loss to to Central Florida on Sunday is probably a sign of things to come.

The Wolf Pack is young and it’s going to drop some games this season as the team gels, but that doesn’t change the Wolf Pack’s potential to make a fifth straight NCAA Tournament run.

First off, the loss wasn’t that bad. The Knights won 20 games in Conference USA last season and they were opening a new building on Sunday.

It was also the first time the whole team played together against a live opponent - starters Marcelus Kemp and Brandon Fields were suspended for the exhibition - and there were some clear chemistry issues that will be resolved as the team logs more minutes together.

All-in-all, the circumstances weren’t good for taking a young team across country to play a solid opponent and it showed.

Kemp struggled, shooting 8 for 22 from the field and 1 of 8 from 3-point range. He still scored a game-high nine points, but it was far from efficient.

Until one of the sophomores or freshman Armon Johnson shows they can take over games, the Wolf Pack is going to struggle whenever Kemp is off.

Despite Kemp’s struggles, the Wolf Pack lost because of sloppy turnovers and offensive rebounds.

The Knights scored several baskets off 19 offensive rebounds.

The Wolf Pack also had 18 turnovers, many on foolish passes or mishandled balls.  That’s the biggest problem with a young team. Turnovers prevent you finding a rhythm, and that certainly seemed to be the case on Sunday.

Those were the deciding factors of the game. It will get better the season moves along, but expect some rough play for the next few weeks.

So I’m sitting in my living room, drinking a can of Newcastle - that’s right, a can - watching Hawaii bash Fresno State, when all of a sudden I notice Heisman Trophy candidate Colt Brennan lined up three yards behind the center with running back Leon Wright-Jackson lined up directly behind him in a single I.

Sound familiar? It should - Hawaii looked was running out of the “Pistol” formation.

Now, Hawaii coach June Jones is a devoted innovator of the spread (the run-and-shoot to be precise), so I thought maybe my mind was drifting toward the halftime Qdoba run.

Then Wright-Jackson broke away for a 33-yard touchdown, and the replays confirmed my suspicions.

Nevada football coach Chris Ault’s “Pistol” offense has gotten plenty of play in national college football this season.

While the Wolf Pack is the only team that runs the offense as its primary package, LSU, Syracuse and Virginia Tech have pistol packages in their offense.

Now it appears as if Ault’s creation is getting a little love for elsewhere in the conference.

It makes good sense for the Rainbow Warriors. The stunted shotgun would add a north-south dimension to their running game - which could be lethal because Wright-Jackson was a stud in high school - without altering their passing attack.

That should make for a few interesting moments next week as Hawaii comes to Reno next week.

Senior guard Marcelus Kemp and sophomore guard Brandon Fields are out for tomorrow’s scrimmage against Seattle Pacific.

No specific reason was given today when the information was released, but Nevada coach Mark Fox said Tuesday that there would be a couple players suspended against Seattle Pacific for missing class.

Fox is doing right by punishing his players, even though Kemp and Fields both figure prominently into the battle for point guard. Fox wants to keep a disciplined team, and holding even his star player (Kemp) to that code sends a positive message.

For every fan anxiously waiting to get a peak as this year’s squad, this is a big disappointment.

The side effect, though, is that the suspensions should mean a whole lot of playing time for freshman Armon Johnson at the point. Johnson, a local from Hug High, is one of the most anticipated recruits in Nevada history, and he’s been competing with Fields and Kemp to fill the hole at starting point guard left when Ramon Sessions jumped to the NBA.

Johnson and little-used senior Curry Lynch are the only two true point guards left. Fox said Friday that Johnson would play exclusively at the point. Whether he’s ready or not, Johnson will have to log serious minutes until Lyndale Burleson comes off suspension.

Johnson can really score - he slashes to the basket and shoots well from outside. Athletically, he’s as good a lead guard as there is in the conferenc and he handles the ball well, too.

How comfortable he is getting other players involved is yet to be seen.

Nevada volleyball takes on Hawaii tonight at Virginia Street Gym at 7:00 p.m.

Wolf Pack coach Devin Scruggs has never beaten the Rainbow Wahine, but tonight’s match should be competitive.

The Wolf Pack has huge momentum after winning nine of its last 11 matches, including a big win on Tuesday against a really good Sacramento State team (the Hornets had the 30th most votes in last week’s top 25 poll).

Barring a match in the WAC Tournament, this is also the last chance for Nevada’s seniors to beat Hawaii.

The Wolf Pack took the Rainbow Wahine to five games twice when Teal Ericson and Karly Sipherd were freshmen. The pair has had a great career - and this team is as good as that one - and they should have plenty of motivation in their last weekend playing at the VSG.

Plenty of people are mourning this week after Sunday morning’s tragedy, and rightfully so, but another headline caught my eyes yesterday.

Talented crooner/my hero Robert Goulet died at 73 yesterday while waiting for a lung transplan. He was diagnosed with interstitial pulmonary fibrosis last month.

Goulet will forever be a cult icon and star in my eyes, if only from Will Ferrell’s impersonation of him on Saturday Night Live.

In memory of the man with the golden voice, enjoy.

You win Goulet, you always do.

Nevada forward Tyrone Hanson has been dismissed from the basketball team.

Hanson was apparently beaten and robbed at the party on Saturday where three people were shot and killed, but Nevada coach Mark Fox said the dismissal had nothing to do with the tragedy.

Hanson was held out of Saturday’s scrimmage for breaking an unspecified team rule, then broke another rule by going to the party that night.

Obviously the tragic loss of three lives far outweighs the importance of basketball, but Hanson’s absence will be a gigantic loss.

Hanson was competing for a starting position. He’s lethal from deep, which is where the Wolf Pack will miss him most, but his length also made him disruptive on defense. With a young, athletic team this season, the Wolf Pack is focused on being stingy defensively. Hanson would have been a big help in that department.

He had the potential to be an All-WAC player, but rules are rules. It’s tough to fault a player for being caught in the wrong place at the wrong time, as Hanson claims he was, but Nevada coach Mark Fox keeps his program tight.