Jan. 13, 2006

LAS VEGAS -

UNLV-San Diego State game notes
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The UNLV women's basketball team (9-3, 1-0) hosts its second conference game of the season as they play San Diego State on Saturday night at 7 pm in the Cox Pavilion.

After the first week and a half of play, it has become obvious that this will be one of the most competitive seasons ever in Mountain West Conference women's basketball, with just one undefeated team left and several games coming down to the final seconds. With that said, that leaves every game important for the Lady Rebels' chances at the conference title, especially their games at home, and a win on Saturday would keep UNLV in the top half of the conference standings and just one game out of first place.

San Diego State will also have a familiar face on the bench for tonight's game, though not the same as last year as Beth Burns has returned to the Aztecs as head coach after eight seasons during the 1990s. She is 2-2 all-time against UNLV, but has never coached against Lady Rebel head coach Regina Miller. Meanwhile, Miller is 10-2 all-time against San Diego State and her teams have never lost to the Aztecs at home in Las Vegas.

Though the Lady Rebels' scoring has dropped off this season, with a 66.3 ppg average through 13 games to rank sixth in the MWC after leading the league in scoring in 2003-04 and 2004-05, UNLV is at the top of the league in several defensive categories. The Lady Rebels are currently leading the conference in blocks (4.8 bpg), and second in both steals (10.92 spg) and rebound margin at +8.1.

With their win over Wyoming, the Lady Rebels are now just six wins away from their 600th win in program history, a mark only 34 schools have reached in NCAA history.