Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Live coverage: UNLV basketball stays perfect with 74-70 win over Washington State

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Steve Marcus

UNLV Rebels guard Luis Rodriguez (15) celebrates after sinking a three-point basket during the second half of an NCAA basketball game against the Hawaii Warriors at The Dollar Loan Center in Henderson Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2022.

Updated Saturday, Dec. 10, 2022 | 3:35 p.m.

UNLV basketball is a perfect 10-0 after dispatching Washington State, 74-70.

This may have been the most impressive win of the season for the Scarlet and Gray. Washington State came to play and shot 59.1% from 3-point range (13-of-22), but UNLV leaned on its identity — pressure defense — and forced 22 turnovers to blunt the impact of all those 3's. The nearly two dozen takeaways led to 31 points off turnovers.

Keshon Gilbert was the main catalyst for UNLV. The sophomore guard scored a career-high 25 points, 17 of which came in the second half, and also added five rebounds, three assists, three steals and two charges drawn.

E.J. Harkless backed him up with 20 points. Victor Iwuakor blocked two shots and was a plus-16 in his 18 minutes off the bench.

Gilbert did miss the front end of a 1-and-1 in the final minute, and Iwuakor missed both free throws with 35 seconds left to give Washington State life. But they made up for it by combining to force a turnover on the Cougars' final possession when a 3 would have tied it (Justin Webster was credited with the clinching steal). 

The undefeated Scarlet and Gray will now have a week off before hosting San Francisco on Saturday.

UNLV leads Washington State late behind Gilbert's 23 points

Keshon Gilbert is on fire, and UNLV leads Washington State, 66-58, with 3:47 to play.

Gilbert has made six of his seven shots in the second half and is now up to 23 points, which ties his career high from a few weeks ago against Incarnate Word. The sophomore also has three assists and three steals, and he has drawn a pair of charges.

The game is not over, however. Washington State continues to hang around due to good long-range shooting (6-of-8 in the second half), and the Cougars will have the ball after the timeout.

Harkless, Gilbert have UNLV up on Washington State, 57-47

UNLV weathered some hot shooting by Washington State to start the half, and with 11:59 the Scarlet and Gray have a 57-47 advantage.

Washington State came out of the locker room and made five straight 3-pointers, but E.J. Harkless kept UNLV in front by nailing a 3 of his own, plus a couple mid-range jumpers. Keshon Gilbert has since scored a couple highlight buckets in transition to extend the lead.

Turnovers and ensuing transition opportunities have been UNLV's lifeblood today. They've got 19 takeaways on the defensive end, which have led to 24 points off turnovers. Luis Rodriguez is leading the way with three steals.

Gilbert and Harkless have 14 points apiece.

UNLV leads Washington State at half, 33-30

UNLV went nearly five minutes without scoring toward the end of the half, but recovered in time to regain a 33-30 lead at the break.

Washington State's zone defense really flummoxed the Scarlet and Gray, but Jackie Johnson and Keshon Gilbert both hit running floaters in the final minute. Gilbert has a team-high eight points, while Johnson has five. As a team UNLV made 48.3% of its shots in the half.

WSU has been super efficient on offense — when they've been able to get off a shot. UNLV has harassed the Cougars into 16 turnovers already; other than that, WSU has connected on an astounding 61.1% from the field and 6-of-10 from 3-point range. T.J. Bamba is leading the Cougars with nine points.

This game may be decided by how Kevin Kruger and his crew handle the zone over the next 20 minutes. If UNLV can generate some consistent offense, 10-0 is within reach.

UNLV uses 18-0 run to surge ahead of Washington State

Like a lot of UNLV games this season, this one has turned in the blink of an eye.

The Scarlet and Gray held Washington State scoreless for more than four minutes and went on an 18-0 run to surge ahead, 25-19, with 7:42 left in the first half.

The run included 3-pointers from Jackie Johnson and Justin Webster, and a breakaway alley-oop that Johnson laid off the backboard for Luis Rodriguez to slam home. UNLV is 5-of-10 from deep.

Keshon Gilbert has five points and E.J. Harkless has five.

UNLV's swarming defense has really bothered Washington State, forcing 10 turnovers so far. When the Cougars have taken care of the ball, they've been able to get inside the defense and convert easy looks (7-of-11 FGs).

UNLV did suffer a setback when senior guard Eli Parquet hit the floor and stayed down, holding his leg. Parquet eventually left the court with a trainer and went to the locker room.

Washington State takes early lead over UNLV basketball

The 3-pointers have been falling in the opening minutes — for one team, anyway — and Washington State has jumped out to a 13-6 lead over UNLV with 14:43 left in the first half.

Washington State is a perfect 3-of-3 from long range; UNLV hasn't been able to join in on the fun, as they're 0-of-3.

Washington State is the longest, most active defense UNLV has matched up against so far this season. Driving lanes have been nonexistent, and the Scarlet and Gray have already committed a couple turnovers while making 3-of-7 from the field.

At the other end, three different WSU players have made 3-point baskets, accounting for the difference on the scoreboard.

UNLV basketball looks to extend win streak hosting Washington State

The UNLV basketball team has already won in four different venues this season, and they’ll try to make it five on Saturday afternoon when they take on Washington State at the MGM Grand Garden Arena (1:30 p.m.).

Can the Scarlet and Gray run their record to a perfect 10-0? Three keys to watch:

Statement game

Senior point guard Jordan McCabe played his first three years at West Virginia, so he understands the difference between power conference teams and mid-majors.

UNLV may be 9-0, but McCabe said Saturday’s matchup against Pac-12 opponent Washington State is a chance for the Scarlet and Gray to make a statement.

“We’re not going to shy away from the fact that it is a Power 5 school,” McCabe said. “We are in the Mountain West, so we understand that people respect us, but they still look at us like, ‘Are they a Power 5 conference?’ Well, then they say no, and we have to go out there time and time again and, over the body of work against Power 5 schools, we have to win more than we lose.”

UNLV has already notched one win over a power conference opponent this year, by virtue of their 71-62 victory over Minnesota in the final of the SoCal Challenge. Beating Washington State would be even more beneficial, however, as the Cougars are No. 60 in the KenPom.com ratings (UNLV is No. 76).

Defending the 3

Washington State is top 50 nationally in 3-pointers made per game (8.9), and the Cougars shoot them at a 36.8% clip, so UNLV will have to respect their ability from beyond the arc.

That presents a particular challenge for the Scarlet and Gray, as Kevin Kruger’s defensive scheme is based on “heavy help” defense — a strategy that can sometimes leave outside shooters open.

Kruger said he doesn’t expect to make to many tweaks to the team’s base gameplan, and with good reason, as they currently rank No. 33 in KenPom’s adjusted defense metric. Instead, UNLV will play its usual swarming D and focus on disrupting the kick-out passes that lead to good 3-point looks.

“They really thrive on creating 3-point looks for each other,” Kruger said. “That’ll be the challenge for us. We’re a strong help team, so we really try to discourage drives as much as possible. If we can make those passes off-time, off-target, so that they’re harder to shoot and the percentages take a dive, I think that’s when we’re at our best.”

Bench wave

UNLV has used the same starting lineup in all nine games this season, which has allowed Kruger to settle into a fairly regular substitution pattern.

One of the benefits of fixing the rotation so early has been consistent play from the team’s reserves. Sophomore guard Jackie Johnson is leading the bench with 9.4 points per game, but senior guards Justin Webster and McCabe have been pitching in lately, too.

Webster has made 10 3-pointers over the last three games (10-of-12) while averaging 12.7 points, and McCabe was a team-best plus-18 in 14 minutes off the bench against Hawaii.

“I think the last two games especially you’ve seen what can happen when we’ve got that second wave, another wave of guys coming in and putting pressure on the defense,” Kruger said.

Who: UNLV (9-0) vs. Washington State (4-4)

When: Saturday, 1:30 p.m. at MGM Grand Garden Arena

TV: FS1

UNLV leaders

Scoring: Keshon Gilbert — 14.4 points

Rebounding: David Muoka— 6.7 rebounds

Assists: Keshon Gilbert — 3.8 assists

Washington State leaders

Scoring: T.J. Bamba — 17.1 points

Rebounding: Mouhamed Gueye — 7.2 rebounds

Assists: Justin Powell — 3.9 assists

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

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