Blog: Rebels use late run to finish off Jackson State, 80-57

By Mike Grimala (contact)

Published Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2019 | 4:15 p.m.

Updated Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2019 | 9 p.m.

It wasn't pretty and it wasn't comfortable until the final minutes, but UNLV snapped its two-game home losing streak with an 80-57 win over Jackson State.

Mbacke Diong was the man in the middle for the Rebels, as he posted 19 points and 13 rebounds.

A 20-4 run (sparked by a Diong 3-pointer) late in the second half helped UNLV open up what had been a tightly contested game for most of the night. Amauri Hardy finished with 20 points and Bryce Hamilton scored 12 off the bench.

UNLV is now 3-5 on the season, with a road game at Cincinnati set for Saturday.

UNLV finally pulling away from Jackson State

Mbacke Diong of all people hit a 3-pointer from the corner to give UNLV some breathing room, and with 3:44 left to play the Rebels have a finally-comfortable 70-52 lead over Jackson State.

UNLV was up 54-50 with eight minutes left when Diong drifted to the left corner on an inbounds play under the basket. Elijah Mitrou-Long threw an entry pass to him, and when Diong saw there were no defenders around he launched his first 3-point attempt of the season. When the shot went through, the Rebels' lead was up to seven. UNLV has since scored another 13 unanswered points to extend the margin.

Diong is having a strong game, with 19 points and 13 rebounds while shooting 8-of-11 from the field. If UNLV manages to hold on to this one, his 3-pointer will be one of the more important plays.

UNLV struggling to put away Jackson State in second half

UNLV came into this game as a 13.5-point favorite, but Jackson State isn't going away. With 11:53 left to play, the Rebels' lead is down to 50-45.

The Rebels have shot the ball well, making 52.5 percent from the field, but unforced errors are allowing Jackson State to stay close; UNLV has committed 16 turnovers and hit on just 2-of-11 from the free-throw line.

This is the point in a game where a strong home-court advantage could come in handy and give the Rebels a little boost when they're struggling, but with the Thomas & Mack Center almost empty, that is not going to happen. UNLV is going to have to find a way to put Jackson State away in the next few minutes or this is going to get very uncomfortable.

UNLV leads Jackson State at half, 36-27

Amauri Hardy has 11 points and Bryce Hamilton has eight off the bench, but aside from those two it has been another rough night at the offensive end for UNLV. At halftime, the Rebels lead Jackson State, 36-27.

Hardy and Hamilton are a combined 7-of-12 from the field and 4-of-5 from 3-point range, but turnovers have been an issue for the Rebels again. Elijah Mitrou-Long has committed three of UNLV's 11 giveaways.

Jackson State hasn't looked impressive, but the Tigers are hanging around thanks to UNLV's inability to cash in from the free-throw line. The Rebels are 2-of-10 from the stripe.

With Hardy and Hamilton playing well and Mitrou-Long struggling, it will be interesting to see if T.J. Otzelberger adjusts the backcourt rotation in the second half.

UNLV leads Jackson State, 11-8

It looks like there will be no quick fixes for the UNLV offense. Despite having a very favorable matchup in Jackson State, the Rebels have struggled to score so far and lead 11-8 with 11:44 left in the first half.

As usual, Amauri Hardy has done the heavy lifting fir UNLV, scoring the team's first five points. The rest of the squad has shot 3-of-7 so far.

Jackson State has pressured the ball defensively, taking the Rebels out of their dribble handoffs at the top of the key. That strategy has already forced a shot clock violation and led to five UNLV turnovers.

Three keys for UNLV basketball vs. Jackson State

UNLV will try to snap a two-game home losing streak tonight when Jackson State (1-5) comes to the Thomas and Mack Center.

Three keys for the Rebels:

Fast break

After playing a string of teams that were determined (and equipped) to slow down the tempo, UNLV finally gets an opponent that should allow them to pick up the pace a little. Jackson State is No. 166 in KenPom's adjusted tempo, and the Tigers allow transition on 16.3 percent of defensive possessions, according to Synergy Sports data. Jackson State is allowing 1.234 points per possession in transition, which is 340^th in the nation.

This is exactly the kind of opponent UNLV needs right now. After scoring just 6.7 fast-break points per game over the last three contests, the Runnin' Rebels should be able to get in the open court at will tonight.

Rebound

One of the keys to playing fast is securing defensive rebounds, and T.J. Otzelberger thinks his team can do a lot better job of that. UNLV currently ranks 119th in the nation in defensive rebounding rate (75.5 percent), but that shouldn't be an issue against a Jackson State team that lacks size. Mbacke Diong needs to clean the boards tonight and quickly outlet the ball to his guards in transition.

Shoot the open shots

UNLV has been passing up too many open shots, probably because the players aren't conditioned to shoot 3-pointers as aggressively as Otzelberger wants them to. Players like junior forward Donnie Tillman and Elijah Mitrou-Long have to be ready to catch and shoot, because turning down those shots can often lead to wasted possessions.

"Yes, yes, yes, including myself," Mitrou-Long said when asked if the Rebels have been declining too many good looks. "I'm not going to lie, I think there's some shots that I should shoot, and it hurts our offense. I think we're overpassing, which is not a bad thing.

"We're doing a good job in practice," he continued. "Coach is saying we have to be shot-ready, including myself. I've passed up a lot of 3's that I could have shot. Let's say I swing it and the possession, later in the clock, turnover. I could have shot that 3."

The Rebels' spacing and catch-and-shoot attack could be better if junior guard Jonah Antonio returns from a hand injury to play tonight.

TV: UNLVRebels.com, 7 p.m.

Betting line: UNLV minus 13; over/under 131

UNLV 2-5

Coach: T.J. Otzelberger

Leading scorer: Amauri Hardy, 18.0 points per game

Leading rebounder: Mbacke Diong, 10.4 rebounds per game

Leading assists: Elijah Mitrou-Long, 3.7 assists per game

Jackson State 0-5

Coach: Wayne Brent

Leading scorer: Tristan Jarrett, 19.2 points per game

Leading rebounder: Jayveous McKinnis, 8.4 rebounds per game

Leading assists: Jonas James, 3.6 assists per game

Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.