Jan. 2, 2012
Box Score
RENO, Nev. (UNLVRebels.com) - In a night that featured several milestones, a dominating rebounding performance by UNLV led to a fourth-straight victory over in-state rival Nevada, Reno by a 74-63 score on Monday night in women's college basketball action at the Lawlor Events Center. With the win, UNLV has now matched its win total from last season at the midway mark of the schedule, improving to 11-4 with 15 regular season games still on the slate. The Wolf Pack dropped to 3-11 on the year.
With a rebound in the first minute of the game, senior forward Jamie Smith became the second player in Mountain West history, and the third-ever Lady Rebel, to grab 1,000 career rebounds. She finished the game with 13, giving her 1,012 in her career, three away from tying the conference mark of 1,015, held by Kim Smith of Utah. Smith also added 11 points on the night, nine in the second half, for her fourth double-double of the year.
Another mark set in the game was by junior guard and Las Vegas native Mia Bell, who dished out a career-high 14 assists, tying the school record. It's the most assists in a game by a Lady Rebel since Misty Thomas had 14 against Pacific on March 1, 1986, and is the fourth such 14-assist game performance in school history.
The story of the game was UNLV's dominance on the boards, with a 53-35 advantage, including 28-10 on the offensive boards. That led to a 27-8 edge on second chance points. UNLV also forced 19 turnovers, giving them a 21-9 edge on points off turnovers.
Joining Smith in posting double-doubles on the night for UNLV was Lenita Sanford with 21 points, 13 rebounds and three blocks. Sandrine Nzeukou recorded 10 points and seven rebounds, while Alana Cesarz added a career-high 10 points off the bench. UNLV shot 37% (30-of-81) for the game, was 5-of-14 from three-point range for 35.7%, and 9-of-12 at the line for 75%.
UNR held a slight lead for the first six minutes, going up 10-7 on a jumper by Arielle Wideman at the 14:31 mark. UNLV responded with five straight points, before the game was tied on a layup at the 13 minute mark, 12-12. Markiell Styles then converted on a layup for UNLV, and the Lady Rebels held the lead for the rest of the night. Leading 21-20 in the final six minutes of the opening half, an 11-2 run, fueled by six points from Cesarz, pushed the edge to 32-22 for UNLV with 1:46 to play, and UNLV went into halftime up 37-29.
In the second half, UNR cut the lead to six once, 39-33 with 18:55 to play. Smith answered with a three-pointer for the Lady Rebels, and the Wolf Pack came no closer then seven the rest of the way. The lead grew as high as 14 in the second half, 72-58 on a jumper by Sanford with 4:40 to play.
Kate Kevorken led the Wolf Pack with 19 points, while Kayla Williams and Chanelle Brennan came off the bench with 14 and 11 points, respectively. UNR shot 44.2% for the game, 4-of-11 from behind the arc for 36.4%, and 13-of-22 at the charity stripe for 59.1%.
UNLV closes out the non-conference portion of its schedule on Friday, Jan. 6, when it hosts Fresno State at 7 pm in the Cox Pavilion, in a game televised nationally by The Mtn.
