COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (UNLVRebels.com) - Kimani Hamilton and Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn each scored 20-plus points, while Howie Fleming Jr. recorded the program's first triple-double in six years as the UNLV men's basketball team won 91-66 at Air Force on Saturday afternoon.
Hamilton scored a season- and game-high 27 points, Gibbs-Lawhorn added 21, and Fleming Jr. scored 10 with game highs of 10 rebounds and a career-high 10 assists (with no turnovers) for the Runnin' Rebels (14-13, 9-7).
Air Force (3-24, 0-16) was led by Lucas Hobin's 19 points, while Kam Sanders had 18 points, nine assists, and eight rebounds.
BIG SECOND HALF: After holding a three-point advantage at the half (34-31), UNLV outscored Air Force 57-35 over the final 20 minutes.
STAT OF THE GAME: UNLV made 79.3% of its shots in the second half (23 of 29), including 7 of 8 on 3-pointers (87.5%).
TRIPLE-DOUBLE: Fleming Jr.'s triple-double was the first for a UNLV player since Marvin Coleman had 11 points, 12 rebounds, and 11 assists vs. New Mexico in 2020. Fleming Jr.'s also marked just the second triple-double in 26 years for a Runnin' Rebel.
TURNING POINT: After Air Force took a 38-36 lead with 18:30 to play, UNLV went on a 14-3 run to take a nine-point lead at 50-41 with 15:23 left. Air Force cut it to six, but another big 20-5 run later on over a seven-minute span gave UNLV a 23-point lead (81-58) with 4:24 to go.
QUOTABLE: "Air Force is well-coached and they are a Division I basketball team. I know they have had some struggles this year, but you are playing on their home floor and they run good offense and make it difficult for you defensively. I thought we were getting baited into shooting threes in the first half, and we were lethargic. Our agenda wasn't the right agenda to play the right way and we were not what we have been and who we have been. Our second half was really good on both ends of the floor. We were able to get three stops in a row seven different times throughout the course of the game today. We were able to pull away in the second half and any time you can get a road win it's a great deal." - UNLV head coach Josh Pastner
OTHER NOTES:
- Gibbs-Lawhorn, who has scored 20-plus points in seven straight games and in nine of the last 10, scored 19 of his points in the second half on 7 of 8 shooting, including 4 of 5 on 3-pointers.
- Tyrin Jones left the game late in the first half because of altitude sickness after scoring 12 points on 5 of 5 shooting with six rebounds.
- Hamilton shot 11 of 19 from the field, and Walter Brown recorded a season-high four steals.
- UNLV shot a season-high 60% from the field for the game (36 of 60) and tied its season-high for 3-point field-goal percentage at 50% (9 of 18).
- UNLV recorded 21 assists on 36 made field goals (58.3%) and committed a season-low four turnovers.
- UNLV had 11 steals and forced 15 Air Force turnovers, which it turned into 14 points.
- There were 11 lead changes and six ties before UNLV took the lead for good early in the second half.
- Air Force had 12 offensive rebounds and recorded 16 second-chance points.
- UNLV led in points in the paint 46-32 and in bench scoring 29-12.
- UNLV held Air Force to 39.7% from the field (25 of 63) and 36.4% on 3-pointers (8 of 22).
- UNLV has made a 3-pointer in 1,287 straight games - every one since the NCAA adopted the rule in 1986.
NEXT FOR THE RUNNIN' REBELS: UNLV will remain on the road next week as it plays at Grand Canyon on Wednesday, Feb. 25. The 7 p.m. MT/6 p.m. PT game will be televised nationally on CBS Sports Network.
