UNLV Rebels guard Marvin Coleman (31) celebrates after a three-point basket by guard Jonah Antonio (10) during the second half against San Jose State at the Thomas & Mack Center at UNLV in Las Vegas Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2020. Also pictured are forward Donnie Tillman (2) and forward Cheikh Mbacke Diong (34).
Published Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020 | 6 p.m.
Updated Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020 | 10:01 p.m.
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UNLV didn't really find its offensive rhythm until the second half, but once the Rebels started knocking down shots they cruised to a 98-87 victory over San Jose State.
The win improves UNLV to 10-9 on the season and 5-1 in Mountain West play. The Rebels are now alone in second place in the MWC standings exactly one-third of the way through the season, trailing only undefeated San Diego State.
Marvin Coleman led the way with 17 points and eight assists, while Jonah Antonio scored 15 (all from beyond the arc). Bryce Hamilton and Amauri Hardy scored 16 apiece.
Jonah Antonio shooting UNLV past San Jose State
As the Rebels continue to blow out San Jose State, one good sign for UNLV is the return of Jonah Antonio's 3-point stroke. The junior has made 5-of-10 from deep so far tonight, and 10-of-22 over the last two games. Antonio slumped after returning from injury, but it looks like he is locked in again.
Antonio drilled back-to-back triples to extend UNLV's lead to 84-65, and despite a mini-surge by San Jose State, the Rebels still have a comfortable 94-78 edge with 3:15 to play.
UNLV leads San Jose State by 16 in second half
UNLV appears to be in the process of blowing this game open, as the Rebels have stretched their lead to 57-41 with 13:49 to play.
Marvin Coleman got the Rebels going early in the second half with a transition 3-pointer, and Jonah Antonio followed on the next possession by nailing a 3 of his own. Antonio connected again from deep to make it a 53-38 game, and Mbacke Diong and Bryce Hamilton scored consecutive layups to push UNLV's advantage to 16 points.
Coleman is leading the way with 13 points, while Hamilton and Donnie Tillman both have 10 apiece.
Rebels lead SJSU at half, 38-32
UNLV has taken a 38-32 lead into the locker room, and the Rebels are probably happy with that given the circumstances.
Leading scorer Amauri Hardy was limited to just 11 minutes due to foul trouble, but Marvin Coleman picked up some of the slack by notching 10 points on 2-of-4 shooting. Bryce Hamilton also enjoyed a productive half, with eight points in 14 minutes.
San Jose State is hanging around almost entirely because of the efforts of Seneca Knight, who played the entire half and poured in 18 points (4-of-9 FGs). Nick Blair and Bryce Hamilton have mostly been checking Knight, and neither has been able to limit him much so far.
T.J. Otzelberger employed a backcourt trap on defense later in the half in an attempt to slow down San Jose State's attack, and that seemed to take the Spartans by surprise. Look for Otzelberger to adjust at half and try to put the clamps on Knight over the final 20 minutes.
UNLV starts hot against San Jose State
UNLV has brought the energy early in this game, and midway through the first half the Rebels have a 17-7 lead.
Amauri Hardy and Mbacke Diong got things off to a good start, as Hardy hit Diong for an alley-oop dunk on the first possession. They connected again a few minutes later for another oop, and so far UNLV is shooting 63.3 percent as team.
If the Rebels continue to play with this kind of intensity, they may be able to put away this under-talented San Jose State team early.
Three keys for UNLV basketball vs. San Jose State
The Rebels have a golden opportunity to improve to 5-1 in the Mountain West today if they can take care of San Jose State at the Thomas & Mack Center. It sounds easy, as the Spartans sport a 6-12 record (2-4 MWC), but they just sprung an upset on the road at Reno last week, so UNLV will have to play a solid game.
Three keys to watch:
Perimeter defense
The Rebels have remolded themselves as a scrappy defensive team, and the guards will have to be particularly vigilant today, as SJSU has two backcourt scorers capable of causing problems. Seneca Knight (16.7 points per game) and Brae Ivey (13.5 points) have been lighting it up in conference play, but most of their production comes in the paint. UNLV guards Marvin Coleman, Amauri Hardy, Jonah Antonio and Bryce Hamilton have to be disciplined while staying in front of Knight and Ivey.
Rebounding
UNLV is at its best when it gobbles up offensive boards and scores second-chance points, and that shows in the team's offensive rebound rate (35.3 percent, No. 9 nationally). San Jose State has not been good at protecting the glass this season (72.9 defensive rebound rate, No. 209 nationally), so this could be an opportunity for Mbacke Diong, Donnie Tillman and Bryce Hamilton to pad their stats with some easy putbacks.
Focus
With rival New Mexico set to visit the Mack on Saturday, it might be tempting for the players to look ahead to that showdown. But victory is not assured against this San Jose State team, so it will be up to the coaches and obviously the players themselves to keep their intensity high and not get tripped up by a classic trap game. A strong home crowd would help that cause.
TV: AT&T SportsNet, 8 p.m.
UNLV: 9-9, 4-1 MWC (KenPom No. 145)
Coach: T.J. Otzelberger
Leading scorer: Amauri Hardy, 14.8 points per game
Leading rebounder: Mbacke Diong, 8.9 rebounds per game
Leading assists: Elijah Mitrou-Long, 3.8 assists per game
San Jose State: 6-12, 2-4 MWC (KenPom No. 285)
Coach: Jean Prioleau
Leading scorer: Seneca Knight, 13.7 points per game
Leading rebounder: Christian Anigwe, 6.9 rebounds per game
Leading assists: Brae Ivey, 3.2 assists per game
Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.
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