LAS VEGAS – The UNLV men’s basketball team (10-7, 4-2) upset No. 22 Utah State (16-2, 6-1), 65-62, Wednesday night at the Thomas & Mack Center. The victory was the Runnin’ Rebels’ first over a ranked team this season and eighth win in their last 12 games against Top 25 opponents. It also pushed UNLV’s record at home this season to 8-1.
UNLV finished the game on a 7-0 run, sparked by a Julian Rishwain 3-pointer, then a transition layup by Dedan Thomas Jr. and capped by a Thomas Jr. fadeaway jumper with 18 seconds left.
Jalen Hill led the Runnin’ Rebels with 15 points and eight rebounds, while Rishwain scored 13 points on four made 3-pointers.
Tucker Anderson led the Aggies in scoring with 19 points, while Ian Martinez had 15.
STATS OF THE GAME: UNLV out-rebounded Utah State 37-34, led in points in the paint 36-20 and held the Aggies to their second-lowest scoring total of the season.
BACK AND FORTH: There were eight lead changes and eight ties throughout the course of the game.
QUOTABLE: “Proud of them, happy for them. Unbelievable fight. To get up off the mat after last week was a great thing to see, but as we know in this conference, the next one is tough no matter where it is, who it is. Felt like our defense was the focal point tonight and it led to a lot of good offensive possessions. When we do that, we have pretty good days. When we watch the film, I think we are going to be incredibly proud of how much they fought, how locked in they were and how much they played for each other, which you have to do if you are going to beat an unbelievably good team like Utah State.” – UNLV head coach Kevin Kruger.
OTHER NOTES:
– UNLV improved to 35-15 all-time against Utah State, including 18-6 at home.
– The win snapped a six-game UNLV losing streak to Utah State.
– It also ended UNLV’s two-game skid.
– It was Utah State’s first Mountain West loss of the season.
– Hill was 7 of 9 from the field.
– Thomas Jr. was just 4 of 14 shooting to score eight points, but dished out a game-high six assists with no turnovers.
– Utah State led by as many as seven points with 5:25 to play. UNLV’s largest lead of the game was five points late in the first half.
– Brooklyn Hicks added nine points and seven rebounds.
– UNLV led 32-30 at the half.
– UNLV managed to make just two of 16 3-point attempts in the first half and finished the game 6 of 25 from deep.
– UNLV has made at least one 3-pointer in a NCAA-record 1,244 straight games.
NEXT FOR THE RUNNIN’ REBELS: UNLV will play at San Diego State (11-4, 4-2) on Saturday, Jan. 18. The 5 p.m. game will be televised on CBS Sports Network.
TICKETS: Tickets to UNLV men’s basketball home games at the Thomas & Mack Center may be purchased at UNLVtickets.com, by calling 702-739-3267 or by visiting the Thomas & Mack Center Box Office.
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