Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Live blog: Rebels come up short at San Diego State, 77-64

UNLV Versus San Jose

L.E. Baskow

UNLV head coach Marvin Menzies does his best to argue another foul call on his team versus San Jose State during their game at the Thomas & Mack Center on Saturday, Feb. 11, 2017.

Updated Sunday, Feb. 19, 2017 | 3:10 p.m.

Make it seven losses in a row for the Rebels. They made things interesting in the final minutes, but in the end San Diego State held on for a 77-64 decision.

Jovan Mooring got hot in the second half and finished with a game-high 26 points, but he couldn't do it all by himself. Kris Clyburn and Tyrell Green missed key 3-pointers and San Diego State made its free throws down the stretch, dooming the Rebels to a full month without a win.

Malik Pope led SDSU with 17 points, while Jeremy Hemsley and Matt Shrigley scored 16 apiece.

UNLV is now 10-17 on the season and 3-11 in Mountain West play.

Mooring willing Rebels back within striking distance

Jovan Mooring is trying to will UNLV to what would be its most improbable victory of the season, as he has 20 points in the second half and UNLV is putting a late scare into SDSU. With 3:14 to play, UNLV trails the Aztecs, 68-60.

Mooring has hit all four of his 3-point attempts this half, including some long, contested looks, but he's going to need some help, as SDSU will head to the free-throw line after the timeout to try to extend the lead back to double digits.

For the game, Mooring has 24 points and four assists. UNLV is on a 9-2 run.

Mooring heating up, Rebels trail SDSU

Jovan Mooring made this game interesting again for a moment, as he hit a 3-pointer to bring UNLV within 56-47 with 11:25 to play, but San Diego State has recovered a bit and has extended its lead to 66-51 with 7:35 remaining.

Mooring has carried UNLV in the second half, scoring 15 of his team-high 19 points after the break. He also had a run where he scored nine points in a row for UNLV, but he can't beat SDSU by himself, and the Rebels haven't scored a field goal since that Mooring 3.

Both teams are in the penalty and Mooring has taken advantage by going to the free-throw line seven times (6-of-7), but he's currently on the bench, so it will be interesting to see where UNLV gets its offensive production. Marvin Menzies is looking for a spark and has inserted freshman walk-on Larry Bush at point guard.

Rebels down 13 at SDSU

Kris Clyburn just swished a transition 3 from the corner, causing San Diego State coach Steve Fisher to call timeout, but SDSU still has a commanding 53-40 lead with 13:07 to play.

Clyburn's shot broke up a 6-0 run by San Diego State, but it's going to take a few more long bombs by the Rebels if they want to get back into this one. UNLV is shooting 71.4 percent so far in the second half, including 3-of-3 from 3-point range.

San Diego State leads UNLV big at half

San Diego State has blown this game wide open, taking a 41-26 lead into the half.

The Rebels managed to keep it pretty close for most of the half, as San Diego had a 19-18 lead with nine minutes remaining. But the Aztecs went on an 18-4 run over the next six minutes, powered by three Matt Shrigley 3-pointers, to bury UNLV in a big hole at the break.

Shrigley leads SDSU with 16 points (4-of-7 3FGs) and Malik Pope has 10. Uche Ofoegbu leads UNLV with nine points on 3-of-3 shooting.

UNLV has had particular trouble defending on the interior, as SDSU has a 22-8 advantage in points in the paint. Pope has been effective in the low post, scoring inside on three straight possessions (all jump hooks) at one point.

The Rebels are shooting just 33.3 percent (9-of-27 FGs). If the level of play doesn't dramatically improve on both ends of the court in the second half, it looks like UNLV could be heading for its seventh consecutive defeat.

San Diego State on first-half run

UNLV managed to stay close to San Diego State through the first 12 minutes, but the Aztecs have gone on a 6-0 spurt over the last 1:14 to take a 25-18 lead with 7:37 remaining in the first half.

It's the largest lead so far for either team. SDSU forward Malik Pope scored back-to-back baskets in the post against Tyrell Green, and Trey Kell added a layup on a picture perfect give-and-go, forcing Marvin Menzies to call timeout.

UNLV has made just two of its last 10 shots, so the Rebels desperately need someone to step up and make a shot before SDSU starts to pull away.

Lineup changes for Rebels

UNLV has had eight days off since its last game, and Marvin Menzies must have spent some of that time thinking about his rotation, as there is a lineup change for today's game at San Diego State. Sophomore wing Kris Clyburn is starting at small forward, and freshman Zion Morgan is heading back to the bench.

Clyburn is the Rebels' best rebounder on the perimeter (5.3 per game), so Menzies may be trying to negate some of SDSU's advantage on the boards. Morgan still figures to get plenty of playing time, as he's UNLV's best backcourt defender and San Diego State's two most dangerous scorers are guards Trey Kell and Jeremy Hemsley.

Skidding Rebels desperate for win at San Diego State

UNLV’s losing streak has now reached six games, but with eight days off since their last defeat — a 76-74 heartbreaker at home against San Jose State — the Rebels have had time to reset and rethink their approach to today’s road game against San Diego State.

This year’s edition of the Aztecs isn’t as strong as we’re used to under Steve Fisher (15-10, 7-6 in Mountain West play), but they still have one of the league’s most talented rosters and a coach who knows how to navigate the last month of the season. And on Sunday, they'll have home-court advantage, which is significant, as UNLV is 1-5 on the road in league play.

Can the Rebels pull off one of the biggest Mountain West upsets of the season? Here are three keys to today’s game:

Keep the game out of the paint

San Diego State is not a 3-point shooting team, and it’s not a skill team. It’s a team that wants to bludgeon opponents in the paint, and keeping the Aztecs away from the rim will be UNLV’s top defensive priority.

SDSU relies on scoring inside. More than 32 percent of the team’s field goal attempts come around the rim (excluding post-ups), and the Aztecs score at an efficient 1.125 points per possession on those plays. On all other plays — when they’re forced outside the lane — the Aztecs score just 0.840 points per possession.

Look for San Diego State to force the issue, with guard Jeremy Hemsley and forward Zylan Cheatham making a point to drive to the basket. It will be up to UNLV to push them to the outside.

Play zone

One way to keep an opponent out of the paint is to play zone defense. UNLV doesn’t have great individual man defenders on the perimeter, but the Rebels do manage to play decent team defense when they go zone.

For the season, UNLV is holding opponents to 39.1-percent shooting when they’re in zone defense (as opposed to 44.2 percent in man-to-man), and SDSU’s offense is less efficient against zone defenses (0.881 PPP against man, 0.872 against zone).

The weakness of the zone is defensive rebounding. San Diego State forwards Valentine Izundu and Cheatham do a good job on the offensive glass, but if UNLV can contain them, expect Marvin Menzies to stick with the zone for nearly the full 40 minutes.

Turn it into a rock fight

San Diego State is the better team, as evidenced by the 14-point spread, but neither of these squads qualify as offensive juggernauts. A couple 3-pointers in the second half could be enough to swing the game either way, so UNLV has to turn this game into something ugly and keep the scoring low.

That means draining the shot clock, using timeouts liberally and getting physical — even if it results in fouls. A slow paced foul-fest would actually be a good thing for the Rebels. UNLV is 70th in the nation in free throw attempts with 23.5 per game, while SDSU averages just 19.5 per game. Both teams make at nearly the same rate (UNLV is at 69.3 percent, SDSU is at 71.0 percent), so if this turns into a tightly-officiated symphony of whistles, UNLV should be able to keep it close.

It’s not the most exciting game plan, but hey, UNLV is desperate for a win by any means necessary.

Mike’s prediction: San Diego State 77, UNLV 68. Make it seven straight for the Rebels, who can’t make enough shots or keep SDSU off the glass.

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