LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) - Missed free throws came back to bite UNLV in a big way Sunday, as the Lady Rebels knocked down just 14 of their 28 attempts in a 66-62 loss to Middle Tennessee in the championship game of the Lady Rebel Round-Up at the Cox Pavilion. UNLV tried to rally from a 10-point deficit at the start of the fourth quarter, but its efforts were hindered by a 2-of-8 performance at the charity stripe over the final 10 minutes of the contest.
It was a high scoring contest at the start, with both teams scoring 22 points each in the first quarter. MTSU's three-point shooting eventually overwhelmed the Lady Rebels in the first half though, as the Blue Raiders connected on eight of their first 16 attempts, helping them to a 37-29 halftime advantage. UNLV would close within five points once in the third quarter, but did not get that close again until the final seconds.
THE TURNING POINT: In a low scoring second quarter, MTSU held a one-point edge at 27-26 when the Blue Raiders reeled off a 10-0 run, opening up a 37-26 advantage with seven seconds to play in the opening half. UNLV missed three shots and turned the ball over three times during that stretch, while MTSU hit four of its six shots, which included a pair of threes.
LADY REBEL OF THE GAME: Senior center Katie Powell scored a season-high 22 points and also added nine rebounds and three assists.
LADY REBEL NOTES:
*Joining Powell in double-figures was Jordyn Bell with 10.
* Powell has made at least two three-pointers in all five games this season.
* UNLV is now 0-2 all-time against MTSU, with the losses by a combined seven points. Both games were in Las Vegas.
* For the game, the Lady Rebels shot 38.2% (21-of-55) from the floor and 35.3% (6-of-17) from three-point range.
NEXT TIME OUT: UNLV will host USC on Saturday, Dec. 1 at 5 pm in the Cox Pavilion. It will be part of an afternoon of basketball at UNLV, as the Runnin' Rebels began the day by playing Cincinnati at 3 pm in the Thomas & Mack Center. There will be a live video stream available on Stadium, which can be accessed through WatchStadium.com, Stadium mobile apps and over-the-top connected devices (such as Apple TV, Roku, Sling TV, Amazon Fire and XBox) as well as UNLVRebels.com.
