Dec. 19, 2010
Box Score
LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) - UNLV stayed close to No. 23 Texas for the opening 20 minutes, but the hot shooting Longhorns opened the second half making 12 of its first 16 attempts from the floor to open up a 22-point lead on the way to an 85-59 win over the Lady Rebels on Sunday night at the BTI Classic on Sunday night at the Thomas & Mack Center in women's collegiate basketball action. UNLV drops to 5-5 with the loss, its third this season to a top-25 squad, while Texas improved to 7-3 overall. In the day's first game, South Florida held off SMU by a 61-55 score.
Texas jumped out to a 17-7 lead in the first five minutes of the game, thanks again to its hot shooting as the Longhorns made seven of their first eight shots. With UT up 19-9, the Lady Rebels knocked in back-to-back three-pointers, from Jamie Smith and Mia Bell, to start an 11-0 run. Two straight layups from freshman Ta'Nitra Byrd, who finished the game with a career-high 10 points, gave UNLV a 20-19 edge with 11:25 to go in the first half. The game remained tight for most of the rest of the half. Texas did use a 5-0 run to go up 37-28 with under three to go, but a Kelli Thompson trey brought the Lady Rebs within five, 38-33 at halftime.
Bell then opened the second half with a three-pointer for UNLV, cutting the lead to 38-36 22 seconds past halftime. Then it was all Texas for the next eight minutes. The Longhorns scored the game's next 14 points, part of a 28-8 run over a 7:55 span. A layup from Chelsea Bass ended the run, making the score 66-44 at the 11:22 mark. The Lady Rebels cut the lead under 20 once, on a long trey by Thompson, but UT would finish the game scoring 11 of the final 15 points for the 26-point victory.
Thompson lead UNLV with 15 points and added five assists. Byrd scored 10 off the bench and added six rebounds, while Jamie Smith grabbed nine boards and Mia Bell tied a career-high with nine assists. UNLV shot 35.6% from the floor, made 8-of-25 from three-point range for 32%, and was 9-of-12 at the free throw line for 75%. UNLV was outrebounded for just the second time this season, 41-38, and was outscored on points off turnovers by a 28-9 margin.
Texas was paced by Chassidy Fussell's 21 points, most of which came on mid-range pull up jumpers. Kathleen Nash added 19 points and made four three-pointers on the night, while Ashleigh Fontenette also posted double-figures with 11. Texas shot 60% in the second half, and 49.2% (31-of-63) for the game, and was 9-of-16 from behind the arc for 56.3%.
UNLV closes out play in the three-day BTI Classic on Monday night with a 7:30 pm contest against SMU.
