October 6, 2026 - 3:03 pm

And so another season begins.

Sort of.

UNLV men’s basketball plays the first of three exhibitions against Power 4 teams on Wednesday when it hosts Utah at 7 p.m. at the Thomas &Mack Center.

“We’ve had some really good practices with the emphasis in June, July and August being strength and conditioning,” second-year UNLV coach Josh Pastner said. “We really emphasized that and tons of shooting and skill development in the summer.

“I really like our team. We have a good group of guys. The big key for us obviously is staying healthy. It’s a big deal. We have a really tough schedule, and it starts against Utah.”

UNLV will also play home exhibitions against two teams expected to be ranked to begin the season — BYU on Oct. 24 and Missouri on Oct. 29.

“Obviously, (exhibitions) might not count on the win-loss record, but we’ll know a lot about our team — good, bad, indifferent — in what we need to work on as we move forward,” Pastner said. “I think it’s great we’re playing (Wednesday). It’s early basketball in this day and age … It gets people in the mood and excited for basketball.”

Mississippi transfer AJ Storr remains ineligible after a court ruling out of Tennessee in August.

Storr, who pledged his commitment to UNLV on Aug. 18, was one of 19 individual plaintiffs affected by the ruling.

Pastner said UNLV continues to monitor the case closely and others around the country in hopes Storr becomes eligible.

The Mountain West media days will also be held on Wednesday at the Palms Casino, where each team will be represented by a head coach and two players from both the men’s and women’s sides.

Utah enters its second season under coach Alex Jensen. The Utes went 10-22 overall last year, including 2-16 in the Big 12.

Contact Ed Graney at egraney@reviewjournal.com. Follow @edgraney on X.