In his version of a pop quiz, coach Riley Wallace had just one question for his University of Hawai'i men's basketball team.

"Who's the first-place team in the WAC?" he asked the Rainbow Warriors after yesterday's practice at the Stan Sheriff Center.

The answer was right there on each practice jersey: Hawai'i.

It may be early in the Western Athletic Conference season, but Wallace wanted to remind his team that it is atop the standings at 1-0.

The true test will come tonight when the 'Bows host Nevada in a key WAC game.

"It's a big game for us because we're at home," Wallace said. "And we know how good Nevada is. There's a reason why everybody is picking them to win the WAC. They're very good."

Hawai'i is 7-4 overall; Nevada is 10-2, and tonight is its WAC opener.

The 'Bows beat Utah State on Dec. 17 for their first conference victory. Nevada, Utah State and Hawai'i are generally considered the top three teams in the WAC.

"If we get this one, we can really feel good about ourselves because it would be against the two top teams in the league," Wallace said.

But it won't be easy.

The Wolf Pack is the biggest team in the conference, and it has the returning WAC Player of the Year in 6-foot-11 junior forward Nick Fazekas.

Nevada was ranked as high as No. 17 in the Associated Press Top 25 last month, but it dropped out this week after a loss at Saint Mary's.

"I do like our team, but we still have to do the simple things that is required to win," Nevada head coach Mark Fox said. "We have to defend and rebound and take care of the ball. And we have to do those things consistently."

The Wolf Pack went 25-7 last season and won the WAC regular-season title with a 16-2 record. Nevada beat Hawai'i twice last season, including a first-ever victory in Honolulu.

Fazekas averaged 21.5 points and 14.5 rebounds in the two wins over the 'Bows last season. This season, he is averaging 20.2 points and 8.4 rebounds per game, despite often having to face double-team defenses.

"He's got a great, soft touch for a guy that size," Wallace said. "And he never hesitates. He's got great confidence. We'll need to run a lot of help (defense) to guard him."

Fox added: "He gets a lot of attention from other teams, and fortunately this year, we have some other guys who can score."

Marcelus Kemp, a 6-5 guard, has emerged as one of the best sixth men in the country after missing all of last season with a knee injury. He is averaging 14.8 points per game, and leads the team with 15 3-pointers.

Hawai'i may be the only team in the WAC that can come close to Nevada's size.

The 'Bows will start 6-9 Julian Sensley and 6-9 "Big Matt" Gipson at forwards, and 6-7 Ahmet Gueye at center. They also have 6-6 Matt Lojeski at shooting guard and 7-foot center Chris Botez off the bench.

The Wolf Pack will start Fazekas alongside 7-foot Chad Bell and 6-7 Mo Charlo. It also has 7-1 David Ellis and 6-9 Demarshay Johnson in reserve.

"We all know how good Nevada is, but we all know how good we can be, too," Sensley said. "This is my third year here, and this is the best team we've had. I think we're a NCAA (Tournament) team and this is our chance to show it."

Sensley was a starter on the 2003-04 Hawai'i team that beat Nevada in the Sheriff Center.

"We know it can be done," he said. "We just have to go out and execute like we're supposed to."

Reach Dayton Morinaga at dmorinaga@honoluluadvertiser.com.