Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

The end again unkind to Rebels, who fall to SDSU in Mountain West tourney

UNLV (18-15) is knocked out after a 67-64 loss to the Aztecs but the Rebels are considering continuing their season in the CBI tournament

UNLV Loses to San Diego State

L.E. Baskow

UNLV forward Christian Wood (5) waves goodbye for the season to fans after losing to San Diego State in their Mountain West Men’s Championship game on Thursday, March, 12, 2015.

UNLV Loses to SDSU

UNLV forward Christian Wood (5) places a towel over his face in a late-game huddle as San Diego State pulls away during their Mountain West Men's Championship game on Thursday, March, 12, 2015. Launch slideshow »
The Rebel Room

Conference Tournament Week

Four men's conference basketball tournaments take over three Las Vegas arenas this week, including the Mountain West tournament at the Thomas & Mack Center. Las Vegas Sun sports writers Ray Brewer and Taylor Bern discuss UNLV's outlook as the No. 7 seed.

This ending was painfully familiar, the reasons for UNLV losing its 15th game of the season ticking off so many of the same mistakes that led to the 14 previous. The key difference was this one was (sort of) the end, because no matter a team’s record, the conference tournament offers hope that if you can just get it right this time and go on a run the NCAA Tournament is still waiting to reward you.

That hope lives until you lose, and for the Rebels (18-15) that meant it existed until they gave up two offensive rebounds in the final 30 seconds of another classic meeting with San Diego State tonight that went the Aztecs’ way for the sixth straight time. UNLV sophomore Christian Wood tried to keep that hope alive for the Rebels with 21 points and eight rebounds, but after the final buzzer he was slumped over with his hands on his knees, perhaps having played his last game at the Thomas & Mack Center.

“Everything was right there for us,” Wood said after UNLV lost 67-64 in the Mountain West tournament quarterfinals. “It was the little things.”

That could apply to any number of UNLV games this season. The Rebels finished 2-9 in Mountain West games decided by six points or fewer, and despite leading at halftime of the last 16 games, they went 8-8 during that stretch in part because they were outscored by 50 in the first five minutes of the second half during league play.

Tonight it was a 10-point swing. The Aztecs, who are in the conference semifinals for a league-record eighth straight season, shot 27.3 percent in the first half but opened the second half on a 10-0 run aided by four UNLV missed free throws.

The Rebels are out of the conference tournament and won’t be selected for the NCAA or National Invitation Tournament, but as UNLV coach Dave Rice discussed a couple of weeks ago the program is looking at playing in another postseason event. Specifically, they’ve had conversations with the College Basketball Invitational and the Rebels will meet at noon Friday to decide whether they want to accept a bid.

“When you have as many young guys as we have — it’s not an excuse for losing games — when you have guys who have an opportunity to get postseason experience, I think there’s value in more practices and more games,” Rice said.

All of the players who were asked about it after the loss sounded like they wanted to continue the season as long as possible.

“I think we have a group of guys who love to play the game,” said senior Jelan Kendrick. “Even if we weren’t playing in the postseason, I feel like we’ll be playing pickup come Sunday. That’s the type of guys we have. They love the game.”

The ongoing renovations to the Mack are scheduled to ramp up Monday, so Rice said he’s checking on the building’s availability. Even if it’s a road game, though, it sounds like the Rebels will seek an appearance in the 16-team tournament that last year featured Fresno State making the best-of-three championship series.

“I told the guys afterwards it’s a group that we want to keep coaching,” Rice said.

San Diego State (25-7) threatened to run away with this game but an and-one from senior Cody Doolin stemmed the early second-half tide and then Wood went into takeover mode. He drove from the wing through multiple defenders for a two-handed slam and hit a transition 3-pointer that cut the deficit to one with just under 10 minutes to play.

“We had plenty of chances this season to just fold up and go home, and we didn’t,” Doolin said. “We battled till the end.”

Back and forth they went. SDSU senior Aqeel Quinn scored 15 of his 21 points in the second half with a stroke that barely hit the rim while UNLV freshman Jordan Cornish added another big 3-pointer to his budding resume while Kendrick chased another chance to win his way to the NCAA Tournament with 13 points and 13 rebounds.

UNLV trailed by seven with 1:49 remaining but had it down to three with 35 seconds left with Dwayne Polee II attempting his second free throw. The Rebels got the lifeline they needed, a miss, only to botch a not-so-little thing.

Findlay Prep product Winston Shepard beat Wood for the rebound, missed a shot and then grabbed it again for the putback that effectively ended the game.

“I thought the ref was going to call over the back,” Wood said.

There would be no whistle and Cornish’s 3 at the buzzer was redemption for Rebel bettors — plus-5.5 or plus-6 at most places — but not the Rebels. Whatever decision is made about the CBI will be with next season in mind more than salvaging anything from a frustrating 2014-15 campaign.

Wood said he hasn’t decided yet whether he’ll declare for the NBA Draft and freshman Rashad Vaughn, who missed the last nine games with a knee injury, will have a similar decision, if it hasn’t been already made. Whatever those two decide, it’s clear to critics and supporters alike that UNLV has building blocks in the freshman class plus others waiting in the wings.

Whether that turns into brilliant architecture or a pile of rubble only the future knows.

“I think every single guy in our program who comes back next year will be able to use the experiences this year as motivation in the summer, in the weight room, the track and the gym to help us be much better next year,” Rice said.

Taylor Bern can be reached at 948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Taylor on Twitter at twitter.com/taylorbern.

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