Boise State forward Naje Smith (23) dunks past UNLV center David Muoka (12) in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game during the Mountain West tournament Thursday, March 9, 2023, in Las Vegas.
Published Thursday, March 9, 2023 | 2 p.m.
Updated Thursday, March 9, 2023 | 8:26 p.m.
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UNLV's season is finished after Boise State outlasted the Scarlet and Gray in overtime, 87-76.
After expending so much energy to erase a 22-point deficit, UNLV appeared to tire in the extra period. E.J. Harkless, who served as the team's late-game closer all year, missed his final five shots before fouling out with 42 seconds remaining, and UNLV shot just 1-of-9 in OT.
Boise State stayed calm, got a key inside bucket from Tyson Degenhart, then made free throws in the final minute to seal the win.
Harkless finished with 18 points in 38 minutes. Justin Webster also totaled 18.
Marcus Shaver led Boise State with 17 points.
UNLV ends the season with a 19-13 overall record. The Scarlet and Gray have not advanced to the semifinals of the Mountain West tournament since the 2013-14 season.
Shane Nowell shoots UNLV into overtime vs. Boise State
Shane Nowell is a hero, and this game is heading to overtime.
The despite not seeing any playing time at all in the second half, the sophomore guard checked in for UNLV's final possession and made the play of the season.
Trailing, 73-70, E.J. Harkless missed a quick 3, but Nowell wrestled the offensive rebound away from a Boise State player, retreated behind the 3-point line and nailed an off-balance triple to tie the score with one second remaining.
UNLV trailed by as many as 22 points, but if they can put together five more good minutes, they could steal this one and move on to the Mountain West semifinals for the first time since 2014.
UNLV comes back, takes late lead over Boise State
UNLV has come all the way back and now has a 67-65 lead over Boise State with 3:42 to play.
The Scarlet and Gray trailed by as many as 22 points on multiple occasions, but E.J. Harkless just converted a 3-point play to give UNLV its first lead of the day. On the previous possession, Justin Webster drilled his fifth 3-pointer of the game. Harkless is up to 18 points, while Webster has 15. UNLV is shooting 57.1% in the second half.
With David Muoka anchoring the defense, UNLV has held Boise to 27.3% shooting since the break.
If UNLV can hold on for three more minutes, this would go down as one of the best wins in recent program history.
UNLV mounting massive rally, trims Boise State lead to 58-56
UNLV is back in this thing.
The Scarlet and Gray unleashed a 15-2 run to open the second half, and they've trimmed Boise State's lead to 58-56 with 10:23 remaining.
Justin Webster and Shane Nowell got things started with back-to-back 3-pointers, and after a David Muoka dunk, E.J. Harkless converted an old-fashioned 3-point play to cap the surge.
UNLV is hitting at a 66.7% clip since the break, while Boise State's hot hand has regressed to 33.3%.
Can UNLV sustain this run and get over the hump? Or at least stay close until crunch time and give Harkless a chance to take over?
Boise State shooting lights out, leads UNLV at half, 50-34
It looks like Boise State has the UNLV defense figured out. The Broncos have built a 50-34 lead at the half and they showed no signs of slowing down.
Boise State using quick passing to defeat UNLV's help defense and it's working, as there have been open shooters on just about every possession. And Boise is sticking those shots, hitting 70.4% from the field and an incredible 10-of-14 from 3-point range. Chibuzo Agbo has 12 points to lead all scorers, while Marcus Shaver has eight points and three assists.
UNLV actually ended up posting a decently efficient half on offense — 46.7% from the field, 6-of-12 3FGs — but it just didn't matter, because every time someone made a shot, Boise would come down and drill a 3-pointer to stem the momentum.
E.J. Harkless has been okay, with eight points on 3-of-7 shooting, but it's a far cry from the 35 points he put up yesterday.
Unless UNLV goes on a run early in the half to cut into the deficit, it's hard to envision a comeback attempt.
Boise State opens 33-16 lead over UNLV basketball
No. 2 seed Boise State continues to scorch the nets, and the Broncos have extended their lead over UNLV to 31-16 with 6:53 left in the first half.
UNLV has offered little resistance on the defensive end, but it's still been an impressive shooting display from Boise, as they're at 72.2% from the field and 6-of-9 from 3-point range. Marcus Shaver has a game-high eight points on 3-of-3 shooting.
E.J. Harkless is still looking to hit his stride. Coming off his career-high 35 points against Air Force, the senior guard has made just one of his first five shots today for two points. UNLV will need much more from Harkless if they have any prayer of climbing back into this game.
Boise State delivers first punch vs. UNLV
Boise State has come to play today, and with 13:35 left in the first half the Broncos have a 19-10 lead over UNLV.
UNLV simply hasn't been able to match up with Boise State on the defensive end. The Broncos have scored on six of their first eight possessions so far, including five 3-pointers and an easy layup. Marcus Shaver has six points and Tyson Degenhart has five.
Keshon Gilbert did not start, but he has made an early impact after missing the last game due to suspension. Gilbert checked in around the 17-minute mark and immediately dropped in a 3-pointer from the corner. On the next possession, he got into the open court and scored a transition layup to give him a team-high five points.
How much longer can UNLV ride out this Boise State hot streak? Kevin Kruger's squad has to get some defensive stops soon, or the gap will only widen.
UNLV basketball takes on Boise State in MWC tourney
Just 26 hours after clawing out a 78-70 overtime triumph over Air Force, the UNLV basketball team will have to do it all over again on Thursday if they want their season to continue.
This time they’ll face No. 2 seed Boise State — an opponent that swept the season series — in the quarterfinals of the Mountain West tournament (6 p.m., Thomas & Mack Center).
Can the Scarlet and Gray figure out a way to stay alive for another day?
Three keys to watch:
Survive and advance
In baseball, they say momentum is only as good as your next day’s starting pitcher. UNLV has to hope that applies to the hardwood as well.
The Scarlet and Gray did not play well on Wednesday, shooting 39.2% in regulation and barely sneaking past lowly Air Force thanks to 35 heroic points from E.J. Harkless. It’s going to take a much better showing across the board if they want to compete with a quality Boise State team that is heading to the NCAA Tournament.
It starts on the offensive end. Senior wing Luis Rodriguez said UNLV’s spacing got jumbled against Air Force, resulting in poor ball movement and difficult shots. A repeat of that would be disastrous against Boise State, which ranks No. 28 nationally in defensive efficiency and No. 1 in the Mountain West.
After surviving the play-in round, Rodriguez believes UNLV is capable of playing like a new team.
“It’s a blessing just to stay alive,” Rodriguez said. “Anything can happen in March, so just to be a part of a team that is giving ourselves a chance to now go win another big game, that’s why I came here. It’s why E.J. came here. So I’m just happy I got it done today and ready for another one tomorrow.”
Rebounding roll call
When Harkless wasn’t doing his thing, some of UNLV’s best plays against Air Force came on the glass.
The Scarlet and Gray have struggled with rebounding this season, but on Wednesday they did a good job controlling missed shots on both ends of the court. Though Air Force won the rebounding battle, 38-36, UNLV held its own, and even made some momentum-changing plays via the carom.
With three minutes left in overtime and UNLV protecting a 65-62 lead, Harkless missed a layup in transition. Rodriguez was trailing the play and beat Air Force to the rim, high-pointing the rebound and scoring on a putback to make it a two-possession game.
With a minute left and UNLV up by six, Harkless missed a free throw but once again Rodriguez was there to claim the offensive rebound, eventually leading to two more free throws for Harkless.
Rodriguez finished with a game-high 11 rebounds to go with 10 points in 33 minutes off the bench. It was the second straight double-doubel for Rodriguez following his 14-point, 13-board effort at UNR.
If Rodriguez can produce like that against Boise State and help UNLV keep the rebounding margin close, it will increase their upset chances substantially.
Harkless thinks he can do it.
“When he is healthy, he can rebound with anybody in the country,” Harkless said. “He came out there, got — I don’t know if it was 13 or 12 last game, got 11 tonight, and one huge one off my missed free throw and kind of sealed the game. One of those winning plays that we need everybody to make and take pride in that and just carry on to Boise State.”
Gilbert returns
After serving a one-game suspension for head-butting an opponent in the season finale at UNR, sophomore Keshon Gilbert will return to action against Boise State.
Kruger had to get creative in Gilbert’s absence, turning to a patchwork rotation of Jordan McCabe, Jackie Johnson and Cam Burist to cover up the hole at point guard, so getting Gilbert’s production back in the lineup will be a boost (11.5 points, 3.2 assists, 1.7 steals).
Gilbert wasn’t a factor in UNLV’s Feb. 19 loss at Boise State, when they gave the Broncos everything they could handle before falling, 73-69. He played just 18 minutes due to repeated miscues (five turnovers) and finished with just six points and zero assists; Kruger is hoping for a return to form in Gilbert’s return to the lineup.
What: Mountain West tournament quarterfinals
Who: No. 7 UNLV (19-12, 7-11 MWC) vs. No. 2 Boise State (23-8, 13-5 MWC)
When: Thursday, 6 p.m. at Thomas & Mack Center
TV: CBS Sports Network
UNLV leaders
Scoring: E.J. Harkless — 19.1 points
Rebounding: Luis Rodriguez — 5.8 rebounds
Assists: E.J. Harkless — 3.3 assists
Boise State leaders
Scoring: Max Rice — 14.4 points
Rebounding: Marcus Shaver — 5.9 rebounds
Assists: Marcus Shaver — 3.8 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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