Men's Basketball 2/27/2026 12:55:00 PM

Runnin' Rebels To Host Intrastate Rival UNR Saturday Night

Fans are encouraged to wear red to the Silver State Series contest scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Thomas & Mack Center.

LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) - The UNLV men's basketball team will return home to the Thomas & Mack Center to host intrastate rival UNR on Saturday, Feb. 28. The 7 p.m. game, which will be televised nationally on CBS Sports Network, is part of the Silver State Series, presented by America First Credit Union.

UNLV (14-14, 9-8) is coming off an 80-67 loss at Grand Canyon on Wednesday. Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn scored 30 points in that contest. The Runnin' Rebels fought back from a 20-point deficit to trim it to six points with just under three minutes to go, but it wasn't enough. Gibbs-Lawhorn has scored 20-plus points in eight straight games. Over that span, he has averaged 28.1 ppg, which includes 30-plus point outings in three of his last four games.

The Runnin' Rebels are averaging 79.4 points per game and have five players averaging 9.0 points per game or more: Gibbs-Lawhorn (20.3 ppg, 1st in MW), Kimani Hamilton (12.6 ppg), Tyrin Jones (11.3 ppg), Howie Fleming Jr. (9.3 ppg), and Issac Williamson (9.0 ppg). Fleming Jr. leads the team in rebounds at 5.8 rpg (5th in MW) and assists at 3.5 apg (9th in MW). Gibbs-Lawhorn is the team's steals leader at 1.6 spg (5th in MW), while Jones leads in blocks at 1.9 bpg (1st in MW, 29th nationally).

The Runnin' Rebels are in their first year under head coach Josh Pastner. Although new to UNLV, he is in his 15th year as a collegiate head coach, having previously led Memphis and Georgia Tech for seven seasons each. He holds a career record of 290-201 (.591).

UNLV's roster has only one returning player, Jacob Bannarbie, and has welcomed 13 new faces. The newcomers include eight Division I transfers, a former international professional, a junior college transfer, and three freshmen.

MORE ABOUT THE ROSTER: This season's UNLV squad, which has had to deal with a rash of injuries, returned just one player from 2024-25: redshirt sophomore forward Jacob Bannarbie. The 2025-26 roster added 13 newcomers - eight Division I transfers, a former international professional, a junior college transfer, and three freshmen. The team features four seniors, three juniors, three sophomores, and three freshmen, with a position breakdown of seven guards, six forwards, and a center. Last season, Bannarbie appeared in 19 games (three starts), averaging 1.6 points and 1.8 rebounds in 6.6 minutes, and shooting 52.9% from the field on 17 attempts.

ABOUT UNR: The Wolf Pack (19-9, 11-6) come to Las Vegas having won two straight games and three of their last five. The two-game streak consists of home wins over Utah State (80-77) last Saturday and against New Mexico (67-60) on Tuesday. UNR is led in scoring by Corey Camper Jr. (17.8 ppg, 4th in MW), Elijah Price (13.1 ppg), and Tayshawn Comer (12.1 ppg). Price leads the team in rebounding (9.0 rpg, 2nd in MW), Comer is the assists leader (3.8 apg, 6th in MW), Price leads in blocks (1.8 bpg, 2nd in MW), and Camper Jr. in steals (1.4 spg). The Wolf Pack rank 15th in the country in free throws made per game (19.3), 28th in 3-point percentage (37.3), and 34th in turnovers per game (9.9). UNR is 4-6 in true road games this season. The Wolf Pack were picked to finish seventh in the Mountain West's preseason poll, with Price selected to the Preseason All-MW Team. UNR's 14-man roster consists of eight upperclassmen. The Wolf Pack went 17-16 overall last season, finishing seventh in the Mountain West at 8-12. Head coach Steve Alford is in his seventh year at the school with a 132-84 (.611) record and his 35th year overall as a collegiate head coach with a career record of 719-380 (.654).

LAST TIME VS. UNR: In this season's first meeting between the two teams in Reno on Jan. 30, UNR won 89-76. The Runnin' Rebels were led by Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn's 26 points, while Naas Cunningham scored 13, and Issac Williamson added 10. Corey Camper Jr. scored a game-high 32 points to lead the Wolf Pack, and Elijah Price had a double-double with 22 points and 11 rebounds. UNR got out to a 9-0 lead four minutes into the game. After some back and forth, the Wolf Pack extended their lead to 13 on two occasions, but UNLV closed the half with a 10-2 run and trailed 33-28 at the break. UNR started the second half with a 17-3 spurt to take a 19-point lead at 50-31. The closest the Runnin' Rebels would get the rest of the way was 13. UNR shot 20 more free throws than UNLV did, outscoring the Runnin' Rebels 23-9 at the free-throw line. Tyrin Jones missed the game after injuring his shoulder early in UNLV's previous game.

PROMOTIONS: Rebel fans are encouraged to wear red to the game on Saturday. Promotional plans include a Rebel Raid T-Shirt Toss with prizes that include cash, a flight voucher, and a $5,000 scholarship in select shirts. In addition, there will be a red rally towel giveaway, fans can take photos with the Fremont Cannon and get autographs from the UNLV football team, there will be tickets given away to David Blaine, 311, or R&B Lovers Tour, and there will be a free student tailgate prior to the game with food.

TICKETS: Tickets to UNLV men's basketball home games may be purchased at UNLVtickets.com, by calling 702-739-FANS (3267), or by visiting the Thomas & Mack Center Box Office.

BROADCAST INFO: Saturday's game will be televised live on CBS Sports Network with Chris Lewis and John Henson calling the action. The radio broadcast may be heard on ESPN Radio 1100 AM/SiriusXM 390 with Matt Neverett, Curtis Terry, and Steve Cofield on the call. All streaming links and live stats are available at UNLVRebels.com and through the UNLV Rebels App.

Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

#12 Jacob Bannarbie: F; 6' 9"; Redshirt Freshman

#0 Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn: G; 6' 1"; Junior

#3 Howie Fleming Jr.: G; 6' 5"; Redshirt Senior

#12 Issac Williamson: G; 6' 0"; Freshman

#6 Tyrin Jones: F; 6' 9"; Freshman

#24 Naas Cunningham: F; 6' 7"; Redshirt Freshman

#2 Kimani Hamilton: F; 6' 8"; Senior

Players Mentioned

#12 Jacob Bannarbie
: 6' 9"; Redshirt Freshman
: F

#0 Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn
: 6' 1"; Junior
: G

#3 Howie Fleming Jr.
: 6' 5"; Redshirt Senior
: G

#12 Issac Williamson
: 6' 0"; Freshman
: G

#6 Tyrin Jones
: 6' 9"; Freshman
: F

#24 Naas Cunningham
: 6' 7"; Redshirt Freshman
: F

#2 Kimani Hamilton
: 6' 8"; Senior
: F