Dec. 19, 2006
Box Score
LAS VEGAS - UNLV scored the first 15 points of the game and never looked back as the Lady Rebels coasted to a 74-50 victory over UC Irvine on Tuesday night in the Cox Pavilion. The win pushed UNLV's record to 4-4 as it finished the first of three games in three days. UNLV begins play tomorrow in the third annual Duel In The Desert, which also features No. 13 Purdue, Boise State, and UT-San Antonio.
Sequoia Holmes, UNLV's leading scorer, did not score in the game and took only four shots, but her offense wasn't needed on Tuesday as a pair of sophomores turned in career games. Shamela Hampton posted her first career double-double, with career-highs in points with 22 and rebounds with 12. Classmate Brittany Halberg also set a new career-high with 18 points, to go along with a game-high six assists.
The two players combined for UNLV's first 13 points, and a jumper from Faye Muller at 14:30 gave UNLV a 15-0 edge. UC Irvine (2-8) finally got on the scoreboard at 13:55, on a layup from Annie Mai. The Anteaters closed to within 10 once in the half, on a three-pointer from Angie Ned. The Lady Rebels countered with five straight points, and took a 45-25 lead into halftime. UNLV finished the first half shooting 67% on 14-of-21 shooting, and was 15-of-19 at the line for 79%. Meanwhile, UCI was held to just 10-of-37 from the floor for 27%.
The lead grew to as high as 27 twice in the second half, even with UNLV resting several of its starters. The Lady Rebels went up 71-44 with 1:26 left on a free throw by Samantha Stickler, before finishing with the 24-point win.
Kameca Simmons made her first appearance of the season for UNLV after breaking her arm in the preseason, and scored 11 points off the bench. Muller just missed a double-double, finishing with eight points and 11 rebounds. As a team, UNLV shot 45.5%, held a 51-34 edge on the boards, and came up with nine steals and five blocks. Just as important, after entering the game ranked second-to-last in the nation in free throw percentage, UNLV shot a season-best 73.3% at the line, connecting on 22-of-30.
Stephanie Duda was the lone Anteater in double-figures with 16 points, and also had a team-high seven rebounds. Mai finished with nine points, while Ned added eight. UCI finished the game 20-of-69 from the floor for 29%, and turned the ball over 19 times.
UNLV returns to action on Wednesday in the Duel In The Desert, meeting Boise State in the day's second game at 7:30 pm in the Cox Pavilion. UTSA and Purdue will tipoff at 5 pm.
