Live coverage: UNLV basketball scores overtime win at UNR

By Mike Grimala (contact)

Published Saturday, March 4, 2023 | 2 a.m.

Updated Saturday, March 4, 2023 | 4:39 p.m.

UNLV just scored its most inspiring win of the season, taking down UNR in overtime, 69-67.

Jackie Johnson took over in the extra period, scoring seven points, including a monumental go-ahead 3-pointer in the final minute. Luis Rodriguez made two clutch free throws to extend the lead, and the Scarlet and Gray held up on defense on the final possession, forcing a Darrion Williams miss at the buzzer to secure the win.

Johnson finished with 12 points, while Rodriguez stacked up 14 points and 13 rebounds. E.J. Harkless scored a game-high 24 before fouling out late in regulation.

Kevin Kruger is now 4-0 in his young career against in-state rival UNR.

UNLV wraps the regular season 18-12 overall and 7-11 in Mountain West play. They'll have a few days to savor this win before the Mountain West tournament begins on Wednesday.

UNLV goes on late run to force overtime at UNR

We are heading to overtime in Reno, as Luis Rodriguez converted a layup with 11.2 seconds left to tie the game, 56-56. UNR's final shot came up empty, and so we're going to play another five minutes to decide this one.

UNLV trailed by two points when UNR missed a long jumper, and after a battle for the loose ball, Rodriguez came out of the pack with a full head of steam. He went the length of the court and snuck in a bank shot over two defenders to knot the score.

UNLV will be without leading scorer E.J. Harkless for overtime, as he fouled out with a minute left in regulation — after making a clutch game-tying 3-pointer to cap an 8-0 run by the Scarlet and Gray.

UNR opens late lead over UNLV basketball

UNR continues surging, and with 3:35 remaining the Wolf Pack have a 53-46 lead.

Jarod Lucas is up to 19 points to lead UNR, while Kenan Blackshear has 13.

UNR has done most of its damage from the free-throw line. The Wolf Pack got UNLV in the bonus early in the half, and they've capitalized by making 10-of-13 from the stripe (16-of-21 for the game). Lucas and Blackshear have taken 18 freebies between them.

Meanwhile, UNLV's offense has ground to a halt. With leading scorer E.J. Harkless watching from the bench due to foul trouble, UNLV has hit just 6-of-22 shots since halftime. The Scarlet and Gray have gone nearly four minutes without scoring and have hit only one of their last nine 3-point attempts.

Unless someone gets absurdly hot over the next three minutes, it's difficult to see how UNLV overcomes this deficit.

UNLV, UNR tied in second half

UNR has shot much better in the second half, erasing UNLV's double-digit lead. With 11:56 remaining, we are tied, 40-40.

Cam Burist is back on the court for UNLV, and E.J. Harkless still leads all scorers with 21 points. But UNR has made 7-of-11 from the field since halftime, led by a couple of mid-range buckets by Jarod Lucas (14 points).

Another key to watch: UNLV is already in the penalty, so UNR will be shooting free throws on every foul the rest of the way.

UNLV is just 4-of-15 to start the second half. They're going to have to figure out how to generate some offense down the stretch, especially with UNR focusing its defensive attention on Harkless.

UNLV takes 31-21 lead over UNR at half

UNLV turned up the defense late in the half, and Kevin Kruger's squad has taken a 31-21 lead into the locker room.

UNR did not score a field goal in the final 6:56, allowing the Scarlet and Gray to close the half on a 10-2 run. UNLV has held the home team to 29.2% shooting while forcing nine turnovers. Senior wing Luis Rodriguez has played a big role in the defensive effort, locking up UNR slasher Kenan Blackshear (two points, 0-of-5 FGs).

With Keshon Gilbert ejected and Eli Parquet still injured, Kruger had to get a little creative to extend his backcourt rotation late in the half. He inserted senior walk-on Cam Burist with 4:17 on the clock, and Burist stayed in for the rest of the half. He didn't do much on offense, but he was part of the stingy defensive stretch to close the half.

E.J. Harkless has carried the offense with 17 points on 7-of-13 shooting. He has played 17 minutes, and probably won't get more than a minute or two of rest in the second half as UNLV looks to finish the regular season with a big win on the road.

UNLV's Keshon Gilbert ejected early at UNR

This game has just taken a turn.

UNLV is down its starting point guard, as sophomore Keshon Gilbert just got ejected following a confrontation with an opposing player during a stoppage. Gilbert and the UNR player went chest to chest after a whistle, and Gilbert appeared to dip his head and make contact with the other player. Officials deemed that worthy of a flagrant-2 foul and an ejection.

On the court, UNR has chipped away at UNLV's lead, narrowing it to 13-12 with 11:49 left in the half.

UNLV is going to have to lean on senior Jordan McCabe to handle point guard duties for the rest of the day.

UNLV basketball jumps out to big lead at UNR

Well, UNLV couldn't have asked for a better start to this one.

E.J. Harkless opened the game with a 3-pointer, then scored eight points in the first two minutes to stake UNLV to a quick 11-0 lead. With 15:57 left in the half, the Scarlet and Gray are up on UNR, 13-2.

Harkless made his first three shots — a pair of 3's and a fast-break layup — and UNLV made its first four as a team. At the other end, they forced UNR into a turnover on the first possession and have held the home team to 1-of-5 shooting so far. 

The fast start has silenced the hostile crowd for now. Let's see how UNLV handles it when UNR inevitably starts to chip away.

UNLV basketball looking for finale win at UNR

After a rocky two-month journey, UNLV will wrap Mountain West play this afternoon in a rivalry showdown at UNR (2 p.m., Mountain West Network).

Can Kevin Kruger’s squad bounce back from Wednesday’s demoralizing loss to Utah State and finish off a season sweep of the Wolf Pack? Three keys to watch:

Hangover factor

UNLV’s 91-66 demolition at the hands of Utah State was no normal loss. The team appeared to give up once the score got out of hand, content to stand and watch as the Aggies shot 73.1% in the second half.

It got so bad that senior guard Justin Webster came out after the game and issued an apology.

It’s fair to wonder if UNLV can rally and come out with a better effort against UNR, given that the result is pretty much meaningless for the Scarlet and Gray in terms of the league standings.

Webster said he believes the team has enough character to put up a fight on Saturday.

“Compete. Just come out there and compete,” Webster said. “I have faith in these guys. I believe we’ll turn around real quick. Because it is a quick turnaround — you can’t think about this game too long.”

Keep an eye on how UNLV responds to UNR’s first big run. If they pack it in, this one could be over quick.

Defense first

Utah State is a bad matchup for UNLV because of the way the Aggies whip the ball around and use quick passing to stay one step ahead of a rotating defense. But UNLV’s scrambling approach has had better success against UNR, which led to a 68-62 win at the Thomas & Mack Center on Jan. 28.

UNLV forced 19 turnovers in that game, harassing UNR top scorers Jarod Lucas and Kenan Blackshear into six apiece.

It was one of the Scarlet and Gray’s best defensive performances of the conference season, but it’s fair to wonder if they can repeat it, especially now that the book is out on how to defeat their pressure scheme.

Look for UNLV to turn up the heat early and test UNR’s ballhandlers.

Coaching matchup

UNLV is coming into the game as a significant underdog (UNR is favored by 8.5 points), but could Kruger close that gap via the clipboard?

Kruger is 3-0 against UNR in his young career, besting Steve Alford in all three meetings so far.

Of course, the players decide games, but perhaps Kruger has earned the benefit of the doubt.

UNLV does take the rivalry seriously. Senior guard Jordan McCabe is also 3-0 against UNR, and he wants to keep it that way.

“I haven’t lost to Reno yet,” McCabe said. “Hopefully we can cap this one off here with one more game up at their place.”

Who: UNLV (17-12, 6-11 MWC) vs. UNR (22-8, 12-5 MWC)

When: Saturday, 2 p.m. at Lawlor Events Center

TV: Mountain West Network

UNLV leaders

Scoring: E.J. Harkless — 18.4 points

Rebounding: Luis Rodriguez — 5.3 rebounds

Assists: Keshon Gilbert — 3.3 assists

Nevada leaders

Scoring: Jarod Lucas — 16.7 points

Rebounding: Darrion Williams — 7.2 rebounds

Assists: Kenan Blackshear — 4.8 assists

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