LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) - The UNLV men's basketball team (11-9, 5-4) lost a close game to New Mexico (17-4, 9-1), 75-73, Saturday afternoon at the Thomas & Mack Center.
Dedan Thomas Jr. led the Runnin' Rebels in scoring with 18 points, while
Julian Rishwain contributed 16 points on 5 of 10 3-point shooting.
The Lobos were led by Donovan Dent and Nelly Junior Joseph who combined to score 56 points. Dent had 34, while Joseph had 22 with 18 rebounds.
LAST FOUR MINUTES: Rishwain made a 3-pointer to give UNLV a 71-70 lead with 3:48 to play but that ended up being the Runnin' Rebels' last made field goal of the contest. Trailing 74-72, Thomas Jr. was fouled on a shot with 1.3 seconds left. He made the first free throw but missed the second after a UNM timeout. Joseph was fouled on the rebound with less than a second left and made a free throw to give the Lobos the two-point win.
QUOTABLE: "Proud of the way they fought, proud of the effort and the energy that was there. Need that at a baseline to beat a team like New Mexico and give yourself a chance, which was a positive from the game in terms of just having that compete and that energy level that was needed. But just because you play hard, it doesn't always go your way. It was a tough one and just like every night in this conference, now we have to get ready for another tough one." - UNLV head coach
Kevin Kruger
OTHER NOTES:
- The win for New Mexico snapped its six-game losing streak to UNLV at the Thomas & Mack Center, marking its first such win since 2018.
- Dent and Joseph combined to shoot 21 of 37 from the field (.568).
- Jaden Henley scored nine points with six rebounds, Jalen Hill had eight points with seven rebounds and Pape N'Diaye had six points with eight rebounds.
- Thomas Jr. was 8 of 9 on free throws before missing his final attempt.
- Rishwain's five made 3-pointers tied his career high.
- New Mexico out-rebounded UNLV 43-35 for the game.
- There were eight lead changes and nine ties throughout the game.
- UNLV led in points from turnovers (10-4), second-chance points (17-13) and bench scoring (14-3).
- New Mexico led in points in the paint, 42-28.
- The game was tied at halftime, 39-39.
- UNLV was 19 of 29 (65.5%) from the free-throw line.
- UNLV has made at least one 3-pointer in a NCAA-record 1,247 straight games.
NEXT FOR THE RUNNIN' REBELS: UNLV will play its next two games on the road, at Utah State on Wednesday and at UNR on Saturday. Both games are scheduled for 7 p.m. PT and will be on national television.
TICKETS: Tickets to UNLV men's basketball home games at the Thomas & Mack Center may be purchased at UNLVtickets.com, by calling 702-739-3267 or by visiting the Thomas & Mack Center Box Office.
