Rebels basketball:
Blog: UNLV holds off Highlanders, moves to 8-2 with 73-62 victory
UNLV forward Derrick Jones Jr. signals his coach as they pull away from Prairie View on Saturday, Nov. 28, 2015, at the Thomas & Mack Center.
Published Saturday, Dec. 12, 2015 | 3 p.m.
Updated Saturday, Dec. 12, 2015 | 6:11 p.m.
UNLV 73, UC Riverside 62
Game over
The Rebels led by as much as 18 in the second half but had to go down to the wire this evening to pull out a 73-62 victory at UC Riverside. Pat McCaw was the difference down the stretch, using defensive intensity that helped UNLV get the lead in the first place to create the offense needed to end a 17-2 Highlanders run.
UC Riverside trailed by only four in the final two minutes but a string of free throws and some timely baskets helped UNLV pull away at the end. Derrick Jones Jr. was the highlight of UNLV's big first half, scoring 12 in 11 minutes and trying to shut down the tiny gym in a rec center with a couple of his dunks.
UNLV fans probably outnumbered the home fans by about 70/30, and their impact was felt numerous times as the Rebels managed to pull away. McCaw finished with 17 points, eight rebounds and seven steals, while Ben Carter poured in 15 points with five rebounds.
The Rebels (8-2) return home Wednesday to face a pretty good Arizona State team and then on Saturday they get another shot at a top-15 victory at Arizona. Check lasvegassun.com later tonight for full report from the Rebels' victory.
The Rebel Room
Rebels Ready for Road?
The Rebels (7-1) have two top-15 victories in the bag, and now they're heading to their first true road game at Wichita State. Las Vegas Sun sports editor Ray Brewer and reporters Case Keefer and Taylor Bern preview that game while looking at what has gotten UNLV to the fringe of the top 25 rankings.
More Coverage
- Take 5: Rebels on the road again today at UC Riverside
- Rebels can’t overcome their mistakes in 56-50 loss at Wichita State
- Bern’s-Eye View: Mountain West basketball picks Week 4
- Rebels on the fringe of national top-25 polls
- Rebels shoot down Ducks in season’s 2nd victory against top-15 opponent
- Instant Analysis: UNLV better than most thought, still a work in progress
- The Sun's UNLV coverage
Coming off its slowest-paced game of the season, it’s going to be interesting to see how much UNLV is able to control the action today at UC Riverside.
The Rebels (7-2) and Highlanders (5-3) tip off at 4 p.m. in a tiny SRC Arena that’s expected to host a large share of UNLV fans. The game stream can be found on UNLVRebels.com.
Wednesday’s loss at Wichita State featured only 62 possessions, nearly 13 below the Rebels’ average this season. UNLV squandered its opportunity to speed the game up with 19 turnovers and the shots rarely fell even when it got good looks.
It was still a close game, which could be encouraging for the next time the opponent dictates tempo, but the Rebels would prefer to not have to deal with that situation. And today is a great chance to try to inflict their style against a Highlanders team that would rank in about the middle of the Mountain West, according to kenpom.com.
UC Riverside has plenty of experience with senior guard Jaylen Bland and junior guard Secean Jackson, plus senior forward Taylor Johns has been great. That is, when he hasn’t been seated on the bench for a five-game suspension.
Johns has missed more than half of the Highlanders games because of an unspecified team rules violation but when he’s in there he hasn’t struggled to find his flow and his presence today makes a big difference.
Prediction: SRC Arena seats only 2,750 and based on UNLV fans putting together two bus rides for about 250 people plus the other Rebels either making the drive from Vegas or other areas, I don’t think this is going to feel like a road game at all. That’s part of the reason that I’m confident in the Rebels to win by a few today. UNLV 73, UC Riverside 67
Taylor Bern can be reached at 948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Taylor on Twitter at twitter.com/taylorbern.