Game day: San Diego State edges UNLV in overtime

By Mike Grimala (contact)

Published Wednesday, March 13, 2024 | 4:32 p.m.

Updated Thursday, March 14, 2024 | 5:39 p.m.

San Diego State closed overtime on a 5-0 run to steal a victory over UNLV, 74-71, in the Mountain West quarterfinals.

UNLV scored the first four points of OT via a Keylan Boone drive and a pair of D.J. Thomas free throws. San Diego State knotted the score on a Darrion Trammel layup and two free throws from Jaedon LeDee.

That gave UNLV the ball, tied 69-69, with less than two minutes to play. Thomas took control, driving inside and finding Rob Whaley alone under the basket for a go-ahead slam.

San Diego State went to LeDee in the post, but Whaley and a double-teaming Shane Nowell forced the big man into a travel. Thomas had a chance to put UNLV up two possessions, but was stripped on a foray into the paint. LeDee came away with the loose ball and was fouled in transition, and he split the free throws to trim UNLV's lead to 71-70.

Thomas attempted another floater but was unable to get it to drop, giving San Diego State possession with 21 seconds on the clock. The Aztecs called a play for Lamont Butler, and he scored on a driving bank shot to put SDSU ahead, 72-71, with 10 seconds to play.

Thomas tried to go coast to coast and got a good look inside the paint, but came up short on a finger roll. LeDee grabbed the rebound and was fouled with 2.7 remaining. He made both, setting up one final play for the Scarlet and Gray.

Thomas took the inbound pass on the run, crossed halfcourt and pulled up from the top of the key. He got an open 3, but it bounced off the front of the rim as the buzzer sounded, ending UNLV's Mountain West tournament run.

UNLV will now wait for an NIT invite, which will be revealed on Sunday.

Thomas finished with 29 points. LeDee scored 34.

D.J. Thomas sends UNLV to overtime with buzzer beater vs. San Diego State

UNLV got a miracle, and the season is still alive thanks to D.J. Thomas.

The freshman scored six points in the final 30 seconds of regulation, including a floater just before the buzzer to tie the score at 65-65 and send us into overtime.

The Scarlet and Gray appeared to be dead and buried with two minutes left, but Rob Whaley and Thomas scored in the paint to cut a seven-point deficit down to a single possession.

Jaedon LeDee made 1-of-2 from the free-throw line, and Thomas quickly scored again on a drive to bring UNLV within 65-63 with 20 seconds on the clock.

Micah Parrish went to the line with 14.7 seconds left and missed both, giving Thomas one more chance.

Thomas drove right, then came back to his left hand and scooped in a tough shot to tie it, leaving just 0.5 seconds on the clock.

Thomas has with 27 points and four assists as we head into OT. Keylan Boone has 15 points and eight rebounds, while Justin Webster has chipped in 14 points.

UNLV trying to come back against San Diego State, down 60-57

Something might be happening here.

D.J. Thomas just scored on a drive, then Keylan Boone hit a pair of jumpers — the second one a pull-up 3 — and UNLV is back in this game, trailing, 60-57, with 3:20 remaining.

San Diego State hasn't scored in more than three minutes, and UNLV will have possession after the timeout with a chance to pull within one point or tie with a 3.

San Diego State leads UNLV, 60-52

Time is running out for the Scarlet and Gray.

San Diego State continues to grind and incrementally add to its lead, and with 5:15 remaining, the Aztecs are up, 60-52.

UNLV has been clamped by a vintage San Diego State defensive performance; Kevin Kruger's squad has managed to make just 12 field goals all game (12-of-35) while committing 11 turnovers. And a good number of those giveaways have led to easy points for San Diego State.

The big difference in the game, however, has come on the boards. UNLV's thin frontline has been no match for the Aztecs, especially center Jaedon LeDee. He has seven offensive rebounds, and SDSU has more offensive boards (19) than UNLV has defensive rebounds (15). That has allowed the Aztecs to score 16 decisive second-chance points.

There's still time for a comeback, and this UNLV team has had some amazing finishes this season. But San Diego State is going to make it very, very hard to make up ground.

UNLV trying to stay close to San Diego State down the stretch

Can you make a season-saving shot with nine minutes left in a game? D.J. Thomas might have just done so.

San Diego State big man Jaedon LeDee canned a 3 to give the Aztecs a 50-41 lead and all the momentum — until Thomas came downcourt, dribbled around a screen and swished a triple of his own.

Kevin Kruger quickly called timeout to regroup, possibly because he sensed how close UNLV was to being daggered before Thomas's shot.

Thomas now has 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting, while LeDee is up to 24 points and 10 rebounds.

UNLV trying to hang around, trailing SDSU late

The name of the game for UNLV right now is survival.

San Diego State has a 42-37 lead with 11:58 to play, and Kevin Kruger is running out of options. He just ran out a lineup of D.J. Thomas and four wings, with Keylan Boone playing center. They played zone defense, and Jaedon LeDee grabbed three offensive rebounds. After he was fouled on a putback, Kruger reinserted Rob Whaley at center.

Thomas is trying his best to keep UNLV within striking distance, as the freshman has 14 points on 5-of-11 shooting.

San Diego State pulls ahead of UNLV, 38-34

The second half has been all San Diego State, and the Aztecs have surged ahead of UNLV, 38-34, with 15:07 remaining.

Darrion Trammell stepped into a 3-pointer to tie the game at 34, then Lamont Butler drove and finished to give the Aztecs their first lead since early in the first half. Trammell then stripped UNLV guard Justin Webster at halfcourt, leading to a breakaway slam dunk for Jay Pal.

Kevin Kruger called timeout to try to stem the momentum of that 7-0 run.

Since halftime, UNLV is 2-of-6 from the field with three turnovers.

UNLV stumbles into 27-22 lead at half

Under normal circumstances, UNLV would feel good about taking a 27-22 lead over San Diego State into halftime, but not with the way that half just ended.

UNLV had an eight-point lead, and following a shot-clock violation by San Diego State, Kevin Kruger opted to call timeout to draw up a final offensive play with 1.6 seconds on the clock.

Inbounding under his own basket, Keylan Boone panicked and threw a pass directly to San Diego State guard Darrion Trammell, who calmly sank an uncontested 3-pointer from the top of the key as the buzzer sounded.

It was a brutal finish to a good half for the Scarlet and Gray. They built a lead as high as 10 points, thanks to superlative play from freshman point guard D.J. Thomas (10 points, two assists) and reserve guard Justin Webster (11 points, 3-of-3 3FGs).

Defensively, Jaedon LeDee has been tough to handle, scoring nine points on 4-of-8 shooting. The rest of the Aztecs have been terrible, making just 4-of-24 from the field until Trammell's buzzer beater.

Can UNLV hang on for another 20 minutes? LeDee and his primary defender, Rob Whaley, both finished the half with two fouls, so that will be a situation to monitor closely.

UNLV builds 16-12 lead over San Diego State

UNLV has a 16-12 lead over San Diego State with seven minutes left in the first half, and they have earned it.

This game has already packed more physicality into the first 13 minutes than any other full game UNLV has played this season. Bodies are colliding on every drive, every shot, every rebound, and only eight total fouls have been called. Neither team is in the penalty yet.

D.J. Thomas continues to shine, as he just used a nifty hesitation move before nailing a floater to give him a game-high 10 points.

Jaedon LeDee is carrying the SDSU offense with eight points on 4-of-7 shooting. The rest of the Aztecs have made just 2-of-18 from the field.

UNLV, San Diego State tied early in MWC tournament

Four minutes in and this one looks like another rock fight, as UNLV and San Diego State are tied, 4-4, with 15:44 left in the first half.

D.J. Thomas gave UNLV an early lead by driving and scoring two contested layups, but San Diego State got on the board with a Jaedon LeDee hook shot. Luis Rodriguez then committed a turnover at midcourt, allowing the Aztecs to add an easy transition bucket to even the score.

Senior center Kalib Boone tested his ankle during pregame warmups, first using a resistance band and then lightly jogging under the supervision of the team's strength and conditioning coach. It must not have gone as well as they'd hoped, because Boone was not in the announced starting lineup. Instead, Rob Whaley shifted from power forward to center, with Shane Nowell inserted as the fifth starter.

Boone entered the game at the 16:34 mark as UNLV's first substitution. We'll have to see if he is effective enough to be a factor today. 

UNLV ready for March rematch with San Diego State

It has been 10 years since UNLV made it to the semifinals of the Mountain West tournament.

Ten years.

That’s a long time for any program to be rendered irrelevant within its conference, and an eternity for a school like UNLV, which begins each season with NCAA Tournament hopes. If the Scarlet and Gray want to break through that barrier and threaten to crash selection Sunday, they’re going to have to beat a familiar opponent today.

No. 4 seed UNLV will take on No. 5 San Diego State in an afternoon quarterfinal matchup at the Thomas & Mack Center, and if history is any indication, there's no way to know which way this one will go.

San Diego State has been a near constant thorn in the program's side during its 10-year drought, personally knocking the Scarlet and Gray out of the MWC tourney in the quarters three times (2015, 2017 and 2019). But more recent evidence suggests UNLV could be better equipped to handle this Aztecs team, as they're coming off a 62-58 win over SDSU just nine days ago.

As in that matchup nine days ago, junior forward Rob Whaley will be asked to do the impossible: Stop San Diego State center Jaedon LeDee, the conference's leading scorer and a potential All-America candidate. Whaley was up to the task in the last meeting, helping to limit LeDee to 12 points on 2-of-12 shooting, and he's raring to give it another go.

"Same approach," Whaley said. "He's a tough dude. Strong dude. It's just about being low, holding your ground. It's going to be a 40-minute fight."

Whaley may not have as much help in the frontcourt this time around, as senior center Kalib Boone is "not likely" to play due to an ankle injury, according to Kevin Kruger. That adds another layer of uncertainty to an already fascinating X's and O's dance.

Another intriguing development is the early quarterfinal game taking place at the Mack right now. At halftime, No. 1 seed Utah State trails No. 9 Fresno State, 36-35. If Fresno State were somehow able to hold on for the next 20 minutes and spring an upset, the Bulldogs' would face the winner of the UNLV-San Diego State game.

UNLV swept Fresno State this season, so Scarlet and Gray fans would certainly take a semifinal game against Fresno in the next round. 

UNLV's Kalib Boone 'not likely' to play against SDSU due to ankle injury

Being down a starter heading into an elimination game is not ideal. Being down a starting big man heading into an elimination game against the toughest, most physical opponent in the conference is especially unenviable, but that’s the situation Kevin Kruger’s squad finds itself facing.

Senior center Kalib Boone did not practice Wednesday due to an ankle injury, and Kruger said he is “not likely” to play in Thursday’s Mountain West quarterfinal matchup against San Diego State. That’s a substantial blow to the Scarlet and Gray, who went 12-6 in conference play by using their bigs to bully smaller opponents.

Kruger left the door open for a miracle recovery, but did not sound all that hopeful.

“We’ll see. It’s not likely at this point,” Kruger said when asked about Boone’s status. “We’ll see how he’s feeling tomorrow.”

Boone suffered the injury in the first half of Saturday’s season finale at UNR. He attempted to play through it, but the combination of his ankle and foul trouble limited him to four points and four rebounds in 14 minutes.

Boone, a fifth-year senior, transferred to UNLV in the offseason and has emerged as a productive post threat, averaging 11.5 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game. He has made an efficient 57.9% of his shots from the field, often prompting opposing coaches to dedicate double-teams to stopping him down low.

Kruger said there is no set contingency plan if Boone can’t go Thursday, noting that there hasn’t been enough time to practice playing without him.

“At this point in the season, you don’t get any live 5-on-5, of course, so it’s something we’ll have to do by committee and figure out,” Kruger said.

In a 62-58 win over San Diego State on March 5, Boone logged 30 minutes and put up six points, six rebounds and three blocks. One of those rejections came on the game’s final defensive play, when he swatted a potential go-ahead 3-point attempt by Micah Parrish with seconds on the clock.

Backup center Karl Jones gave the team some positive production in that game, going for five points, six rebounds and two blocks in 10 minutes.

Junior forward Rob Whaley, who could end up playing a lot of the center minutes in a smaller lineup, said he’s confident the roster is deep enough to make up for Boone’s absence.

“We have trust in our guys on the bench, guys like Shane [Nowell], [Isaiah Cottrell], Karl,” he said. “And those guys will come in, step up and play big.”

Who: No. 4 UNLV (19-11, 12-6 MWC) vs. No. 5 San Diego State (22-9, 11-7 MWC)

When: Thursday, 2:30 p.m.

Where: Thomas & Mack Center

TV: CBS Sports Network

Radio: 1100 AM, 100.9 FM

UNLV leaders

Scoring

D.J. Thomas: 13.6 points

Rebounds

Luis Rodriguez: 6.6 rebounds

Assists

D.J. Thomas: 5.2 assists

San Diego State leaders

Scoring

Jaedon LeDee: 20.5 points

Rebounds

Jaedon LeDee: 8.2 rebounds

Assists

Darrion Trammell: 3.2 assists

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