By Jovana Tomic
No. 2 Seed UNLV advanced to the semifinals of the 2026 Credit Union 1 Mountain West Women’s Basketball Championship after a 79-65 victory over Fresno State on Sunday evening at the Thomas and Mack Center.
The Lady Rebels came out hot, jumping out to a 26-14 lead after the first quarter. Sophomore guard Teagan Colvin set the pace with a strong performance that included a team-high four assists and seven points off the bench.
Danae Powell and Emilia Long fought to bring Fresno State back into the game, but it wasn’t enough to slow the Lady Rebels. UNLV dominated the second quarter with impenetrable defense, preventing the Bulldogs from closing the gap and taking a 41–27 lead into the half.
Destiny Leo, Meadow Roland and Shelbee Brown led the charge for the Lady Rebels and ended up 11-for-17 (64 percent) as a collective from long range by the end of the third quarter, extending the Lady Rebels lead to 22.
Roland, who was named All-Mountain West first team and earned a spot on the All-Defensive team, ended Sunday’s campaign with 19 points, nine rebounds, and three assists as she continues to lead the team in scoring. However, she understands the importance of a group effort, and said “It feels great to have your whole team have your back.”
UNLV head coach Lindy La Rocque is fully aware of the highly competitive games that went on earlier in the day, and stressed the importance of keeping the blinders on moving through the rest of the tournament.
“We’re just trying to learn from other people’s lessons,” said La Rocque. “Anything can happen in March, and we’ve literally seen that today.”
