Feb. 16, 2011

Box Score

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (UNLVRebels.com) - UNLV nearly pulled off a second half rally for the third straight year at Air Force, going ahead by one in the final minute before Megan Muniz hit a three-pointer with 23 seconds left to give the Falcons a 91-87 win over the Lady Rebels in Mountain West Conference women's basketball action on Wednesday night at Clune Arena. UNLV fell to 9-17, 2-10 in the MWC with the loss, while Air Force improved to 8-16, 3-9 in the conference.

The Lady Rebels trailed by seven, 78-71, with just over six minutes to go, but used a 10-2 run to grab an 81-80 lead on Ta'Nitra Byrd's layup with 3:51 to play. The lead the changed hands six times over the final 3:27. UNLV took its final lead with 50 seconds left, when Sandrine Nzeukou's putback off an offensive rebound make the score 87-86. With the shot clock winding down, Muniz drained a three-pointer from the right corner to put the Falcons ahead 89-87. Kelli Thompson then drew a foul with six seconds to play, but missed her first free throw, while the Lady Rebels were called for a lane violation on the second. Dymond James made two free throws for Air Force with five seconds left to account for the final four-point margin.

While both teams shot well from the floor (45.5% for UNLV, 53.8% for the Falcons), poor free throw shooting hurt UNLV. The Lady Rebels entered the game shooting 73.9% for the year, but made 21-of-34 for 61.8%, while the Falcons made 78.1% of their attempts (25-of-32). Air Force also set new season highs for three-pointers made (10) and three-point percentage (66.7%) in a game.

After ending the first half on an 8-0 run, Air Force scored the first basket of the second half, and held between a 1-4 point lead for most of the first nine minutes of the half, while the game was tied twice. A reverse layup from India Chaney gave UNLV its first lead of the second stanza, 61-60 at the 11:05 mark, but the Falcons scored four straight to go back ahead by three. Air Force tried to take control with a 5-0 run, for a 75-68 lead, and after Erica Helms answered with a three-point play, Camille Thompson hit a trey on the other end for Air Force, setting up the final six minutes of play.

UNLV started out the game with a big advantage in the paint, with Markiell Styles and Nzeukou combining for eight points to give the Lady Rebels an early 11-3 edge. The lead was 17-8 in favor of UNLV when Air Force knocked in back-to-back treys to close within 17-14 at the 12:28 mark. The Lady Rebels answered back with three straight points, and led by at least four points for the majority of the rest of the opening stanza. UNLV took a nine-point edge, 40-31 on a Thompson trey, and led 41-35 on a Thompson free throw with 3:05 on the clock.

That was the final points of the half for the Lady Rebels however. Raimee Beck scored five straight, and Katie Hilbig added a layup with 20 seconds to break a tie and put the Falcons up 43-41 going into halftime.

Thompson led UNLV with 22 points, as she was 5-of-10 from three-point range. Styles (12 points, 11 rebounds) and Nzeukou (12 points, 10 rebounds) both added double-doubles, while Helms and Byrd posted 11 each. UNLV shot 6-of-19 from three-point range for 31.6% and held a 44-29 edge on the boards.

Beck led all scorers with 25 points, making 5-of-8 from downtown and was a perfect 10-of-10 at the free throw line. James poured in 18 points and eight rebounds for the Falcons, while Hilbig added 13 and seven assists. Air Force shot 53.8% (28-of-52) for the night, and turned the ball over 16 times to 17 for UNLV.

UNLV returns to action on Saturday, when it hosts Colorado State at 3 pm in the Cox Pavilion.