With a game-high 25 points from rookie guard Dedan Thomas Jr., UNLV defeated No. 25 New Mexico 80-77 on Saturday. The Lobos (19-5, 7-4 Mountains West), who had not lost at home before, suffered their second straight home defeat.
With Rob Whaley Jr. contributing 16 points, the Runnin’ Rebels (13-9, 6-4) won both games in the season series. With four assists, two turnovers, and an 8 of 12 shooting and 8 of 10 foul line performance against the Lobos—who average just under 10 steals per game—Thomas was a productive player.
Coach Kevin Kruger of UNLV stated, “You know you’re going to get attractive looks when you have a player at the point that you’re comfortable with.” “You are aware that the ball will be handled.”
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Donovan Dent and Jaelen House led New Mexico with 20 apiece. House, on the other hand, shot 4 of 15 from the field for 11 points, while teammate Jamal Mashburn Jr shot 3 of 15 as well.
“For the most part, I thought the guys did an excellent job of continuing in front and trying to make as many shots as difficult as possible,” Kruger stated of his team’s defense against New Mexico’s guards.
With less than thirty seconds left, Kalib Boone’s short hook shot gave UNLV the lead for good, ending a 72-all tie. With 11:20 remaining, New Mexico led 57-54 after going on a 12-0 run halfway through the second half. From then on, the game went back and forth, ending in five ties.
For over four minutes, UNLV kept the Lobos scoreless after scoring seven points in the first quarter of the game. It took them six minutes to score a field goal when Mashburn drove across the court for a layup. Before New Mexico closed the gap to 18–15, the Rebels had increased their lead to 16–4.
With a 7-2 run to end the first half, which was capped by a three-point play by JT Toppin, New Mexico took a 40–39 lead. But after the Lobos performed the opening basket of the second fifty percent, UNLV opened up a 48-42 lead with nine more points. “Whenever we went for a run, all you could think was, let’s try to get two more, let’s try to get two more,” said Kruger. “We should try to push this further, as you can expect them to take off.”
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On Monday, New Mexico may drop out of the AP Top 25 after losing a tie for the top spot in the MWC. “Obviously, it is disappointing to lose two straight games at home and to miss out on such a fantastic crowd,” Lobo’s head coach Richard Pitino remarked. “A lot of credit must be given to UNLV; they really went above and beyond.” Their length and size bothered us, but they are an excellent squad that played hard and is well-coached. Towards the end, they converted free throws when it counted. We simply couldn’t establish a lead big enough to get above the hump; we kept coming back and tying or leading by one point.
IN-JOB
UNLV’s Thomas led the charge, but the Rebels’ play at the bottom of the court proved to be crucial as they defeated New Mexico 48–26 in the paint. Pitino stated, “They’re strong at the rim.” At the rim, they have toughness. We need to make those much more skillfully. About 70% of their shots were made at the rim. Thus, we must be far more disruptive.
Next up
On Tuesday, New Mexico travels to Nevada. Two weeks ago, the Lobos easily defeated Nevada, 89–55. Following a 78-69 victory over the Bulldogs two weeks prior, UNLV travels to Fresno State on Wednesday.
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