Dedan Thomas Jr.
65
New Mexico St. NMSU 3-2,0-0 CUSA
72
Winner UNLV UNLV 4-1,0-0 Mountain West
New Mexico St. NMSU
3-2,0-0 CUSA
65
Final
72
UNLV UNLV
4-1,0-0 Mountain West
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
New Mexico St. NMSU 34 31 65
UNLV UNLV 37 35 72

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Runnin' Rebels Win Third Straight With 72-65 Victory Over New Mexico State

Dedan Thomas Jr. led UNLV with 22 points and Jalen Hill contributed 16 Saturday afternoon at the Thomas & Mack Center to close out season-opening five-game homestand.

LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) - Dedan Thomas Jr. led all scorers with 22 points and Jalen Hill added 16 as the UNLV men's basketball team (4-1) won its third straight game in a 72-65 victory over New Mexico State (3-2) on Saturday afternoon at the Thomas & Mack Center. The game closed out the Runnin' Rebels' season-opening five-game homestand.

A total of four UNLV players scored in double figures as Julian Rishwain added 12 points and Jeremiah "Bear" Cherry added 10. Fifteen of Thomas Jr.'s points came in the first half and he scored a career-high 13 from the free-throw line. Hill led UNLV with nine rebounds and Cherry had eight rebounds with five blocks. Rishwain was 3 of 6 on 3-pointers.

The Aggies also had four players in double figures in scoring, led by Gabe Pickens' 14 points. Peter Filipovity and Robert Carpenter each recorded double-doubles with 12 points and 11 rebounds, and 10 points and 13 rebounds, respectively.

HOW IT ENDED: New Mexico used a 6-0 run to take a one-point lead at 63-62 with just over four minutes to play, but a Cherry dunk off a feed from Hill put the Runnin' Rebels back in the lead for good. UNLV closed the game on a 9-2 run with NMSU's only basket during that stretch coming on a goaltend call.

STAT OF THE GAME: UNLV recorded just eight turnovers, which was a season low.

QUOTABLE: "I couldn't be more proud of the guys for the fight. It's always, of course, better to end up on the winning side of it. But a great November game to help us get ready for the challenges that are ahead and the really good Mountain West Conference. It was really good for us to be in a tight game against a good team that plays incredibly hard and plays really well together. I'm happy to see things go our way as we continued to figure things out in the flow of the game. Our talking to each other and problem solving was great tonight. We had some really good plays late where we executed and got what we were looking for. Defensively, we made shots tough and rebounded it well, so just really proud of them, happy for them and of course, it makes Sunday a lot better." - UNLV head coach Kevin Kruger.

NOTES: 
- This was the 31st all-time meeting between UNLV and New Mexico State in men's basketball and the first since both schools were members of the Big West in 1996. 
- UNLV improved to 21-10 all-time against the Aggies and 39-13 against teams that currently make up Conference USA.
- There were a total of 51 fouls called in the game. UNLV was 30 of 42 at the free-throw line and New Mexico State went 17 of 27.
- Thomas Jr. added a game-high four assists.
- UNLV recorded a season-high seven blocked shots.
- UNLV led by three at halftime, 37-34.
- UNLV outscored New Mexico State in fast-break points, 20-7.
- UNLV led by as many as nine points with 14:33 left in the second half.
- Although UNLV led for 32 minutes in the game, there were a total of six lead changes and five ties.
- New Mexico State outrebounded UNLV 45-41 with 21 of the Aggies' boards coming on the offensive end.
- Jaden Henley, Rob Whaley Jr., and Jace Whiting were out for UNLV because of injuries.
- UNLV has made at least one 3-pointer in a NCAA-record 1,232 straight games.

NEXT FOR THE RUNNIN' REBELS: UNLV will head out on the road for the first time this season as it competes at the Arizona Tip-Off in Tempe, Arizona, Nov. 28-29. The Runnin' Rebels will face Mississippi State on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. and then will meet either Butler or Northwestern on Friday at 4 p.m. or 6:30 p.m. Both games will be televised by CBS Sports Network.

TICKETS: UNLV men's basketball tickets may be purchased at UNLVtickets.com, by calling 702-739-3267 or by visiting the Thomas & Mack Center Box Office. 












 
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