LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) - The UNLV men's basketball team (8-5) will be looking for its fifth-straight win as it hosts San Diego State at the Thomas & Mack Center to open Mountain West play on Saturday, Jan. 1 at 1 p.m.

The Runnin' Rebels have won four straight games overall and are 6-1 at the Thomas & Mack Center this season with their only loss in the building coming to then-No. 2 UCLA.

Tickets for the New Year's Day game are on sale now and may be purchased for just $22 each in the lower bowl.

UNLV's four-game win streak consists of two games at Mandalay Bay's Michelob ULTRA Arena on the Las Vegas Strip as the TMC hosted the National Finals Rodeo (vs. Seattle, 76-56, and vs. Hartford, 95-78) and two at the TMC: vs. Omaha, 84-71 and vs. San Diego, 80-57). Over those four games, senior guard Bryce Hamilton has averaged 24.3 points per game on 52% shooting, while junior forward Donovan Williams has scored 18.3 ppg on 58%. Senior forward Royce Hamm Jr. has averaged a double-double with 10.3 ppg and 10.8 rpg over that span.

Hamilton leads the Runnin' Rebels in scoring this season at 18.6 points per game, which ranks sixth in the Mountain West, with Williams second at 12.5 ppg. Hamm Jr. is second in the MW in rebounding with 9.9 per contest (17th in the country) and is also averaging 9.2 ppg and 1.1 bpg. Senior guard Jordan McCabe leads the team in assists at 5.0 apg (fifth in the MW) and is second in the conference and sixth in the country in assist/turnover ratio (4.0).

UNLV has an entirely new look this year with nine transfers - eight coming from the Division I level, including four from Big 12 programs. Ten of the Runnin' Rebels' 13 scholarship players had yet to play in a game in a UNLV uniform before this season began.

The returners include Hamilton and senior guard Marvin Coleman and the 15-man roster includes 13 upperclassmen. Hamilton was selected to the 2021-22 Preseason All-Mountain West Team in October. Initially declaring for the 2021 NBA Draft, the second-team All-MW honoree last season who led the Runnin' Rebels in scoring with 17.9 points per game decided to return to the program.

San Diego State (8-3) has won each of its last three games: vs. Cal State Fullerton (66-56), vs. Saint Mary's in Phoenix (63-53) and vs. UC San Diego (78-57). Matt Bradley leads the team in scoring at 14.7 ppg, while Nathan Mensah is the team's leading rebounder (8.3 rpg) and Trey Pulliam leads in assists (3.9 per game). The Aztecs have won back-to-back MW regular-season titles and have won their last nine MW games.

Saturday's game will be televised nationally on CBS with Rich Waltz and Clark Kellogg calling the action. It will also be available online for free. Jon Sandler, former Runnin' Rebel Curtis Terry and Steve Cofield (sidelines) will handle the UNLV radio call, which may be heard live on ESPN Radio 1100 in Las Vegas. All streaming links and live stats are available at UNLVRebels.com.

Tickets may be purchased at UNLVtickets.com, by calling 702-739-FANS (3267) or by visiting the TMC Box Office.