Feb. 25, 2007

Box Score

LAS VEGAS - UNLV's Sequoia Holmes scored a game-high 21 points and the Lady Rebels shot 52% in the second half to claim their second straight win, a 72-58 victory over Air Force on Sunday afternoon in Mountain West Conference women's basketball action from the Cox Pavilion. The Lady Rebels improved to 12-14, 6-8 in league play, while the Falcons dropped to 5-21 overall, and 1-14 in the MWC.

Holmes finished the game shooting 7-of-13 from the floor, including a career-best 3-of-5 from behind the arc. Shamela Hampton posted 18 points and nine rebounds, while Brittany Halberg also finished in double figures with 11 for UNLV. The Lady Rebels shot just 29.4% in the first half, but would finish the game making 25-of-63 for 39.7%. They were also four-of-eight from three-point range, and made 18-of-23 at the line for 78.3%. One of the keys to the win was their defense, as UNLV forced 21 turnovers while coming up with 12 steals and nine blocks.

Air Force held an early lead, thanks to poor shooting from the Lady Rebels, who missed their first seven shots. UNLV scored just four points in the first five minutes, all from the free throw line, and the Falcons held an 11-4 lead. A 7-0 UNLV spurt tied the score at 11-11, and the lead changed hands three more times in the half. Air Force's last lead was 19-16 on two Jacki Novak free throws with 6:37 left in the half. UNLV answered with six unanswered points, and then Holmes took over. She scored eight points in the last 1:24, off a steal and layup, and two three-pointers, including a halftime buzzer-beater to make the score 33-27.

The Falcons closed the margin to four twice to open the second stanza, the last at 35-31 with 18:21 to play. UNLV slowly increased the lead to double-digits, but could never fully put Air Force away, until the final few minutes when the lead reached 15 points.

Novak paced Air Force with 13 points, and was joined in double-figures by Alecia Steele with 12. Dawn Higginbotham also scored in double-figures with 10 points off the bench. The Falcons shot 41.1% (23-of-56) for the game, but made just 1-of-6 from downtown.

UNLV will next play its final regular season home game of the year when it hosts New Mexico on the Lady Rebels' Senior Night on Thursday at 7 pm in the Cox Pavilion. The game will also be televised nationally by CSTV.