Box Score

BOISE, Idaho (UNLVRebels.com) -

UNLV shut down Boise State with its relentless man-to-man defense, while senior forward Alana Cesarz scored a career-high tying 27 points to give the Lady Rebels their second big road upset in the past eight days, 74-60 on Wednesday night at the Taco Bell Arena in Mountain West women's basketball action.

The Broncos brought an 11-1 home record into the game, but UNLV shot 54.5% in the second half on the way to its third straight win and fifth victory in the last six games. The Lady Rebels (11-13) have now moved into a tie for fourth in the conference at 8-5, along with the Broncos (16-7), and are just a game out of third place. Combined with a 73-70 overtime upset on Feb. 11 at then first-place Fresno State and a win at Air Force on Jan. 31, UNLV has now won three straight games on the road.

Boise State came into the night ranked first in league games in scoring (74.9 ppg). field goal percentage (43.3%) and three-point field goal percentage (40.4%), but were held way below those marks by UNLV Wednesday night. The Lady Rebels forced 15 turnovers while limiting the Broncos to 36.8% shooting (25-of-68) from the floor. After allowing 12 three-pointers in the first matchup, UNLV held the Broncos to seven off a total of 28 attempts, for a 25% mark.

"i thought we were super active defensively tonight," said UNLV head coach Kathy Olivier. "We did so many positive things, we talked about at halftime how we were shutting everyone down, the only ones scoring were the ones we weren't worried about. The second half we did a much better job on the boards, they have some big bodies in there. Alana was feeling it and we had a lot of different pieces step up tonight, just good team basketball and a hard, hard-fought effort on the defensive end."

UNLV had success in shutting down the Broncos' starting lineup, as the Lady Rebels limited four of the five starters to a total of 21 points. The fifth starter, Brooke Pahukoa, was also the only player in double-figures for the team with 17.

UNLV meanwhile was paced by four double-figure scorers. Cesarz, picking up from Saturday's win over Air Force when she finished 8-of-11 from the floor, knocked down 11-of-18 from the field including 3-of-7 from three-point range. That gives her a total of 51 points over the past two games. Also in double-figures was Danielle Miller with 16, while freshmen Brooke Johnson and Nikki Wheatley both posted 10 each.

The first half was a back-and-forth affair, as there were six ties and nine lead changes, while neither team led by more then four points. Boise State led early 4-0, while UNLV grabbed its first lead at 12-10 thanks to a 6-1 run, featuring four points from Miller. Back-to-back three-pointers from Cesarz gave UNLV a 20-17 edge with 7:46 to play. Boise State then went on an 11-4 run, keyed by three treys to open a 28-24 lead with 2:29 to go in the half. The Lady Rebels then closed the half on a 8-2 run, with a three-pointer from Johnson giving UNLV the lead for good with 19 seconds to go in the half, making the score 32-30.

Camile Redmon tied the game to open the second half before UNLV went on a 7-0 spurt, with the visitors taking a 39-32 edge at the 17:54 mark on a short Wheatley jumper. The Broncos responded with a 6-0 run to close within one at 39-38, and twice more cut the edge to one point but could come no closer. Following a jumper from Pahukoa to make the game 43-42, UNLV scored on two straight possessions for a 47-42 lead. Kayla Reinhart's basket at 12:28 cut the edge to 47-44, but that was the last BSU point for the next five minutes. UNLV ran off eight unanswered for a 55-44 advantage with 8:17 to play. Keiahnna Engel broke the drought with a basket at 7:49 to make the score 55-46, but Miller answered with a trey on the other end, and the lead would stay in double-digits for the rest of the game.

In addition to UNLV's defense, its ability to get to the line was a big key in the game. The Lady Rebels shot a season-best 91.3% (21-of-23), while the Broncos made just four total trips. UNLV shot 12-of-22 from the floor and finished the game making 23-of-53 for 43.4%. UNLV was also 7-of-18 form three-point range for 38.9%. UNLV was outrebounded by a 39-31 margin, the first time in six games it lost the rebounding battle.

The Lady Rebels are next in action on Saturday when it hosts conference co-leader New Mexico at 2 pm in the Cox Pavilion. It's also Rebel Kids Club day, with activities such as bounce houses, photo booth and others open to all kids. Doors will open at 1 pm. Tickets are $8 for the contest, kids 12 and under are always free at UNLV Lady Rebel games.