The UNLV Runnin’ Rebels defeated the Fresno State Bulldogs 52-51 on the road, securing their third consecutive win.
UNLV’s Jaden Henley and Jailen Bedford led the Rebels in scoring at 13 points each. Henley added two steals and nine rebounds, just one shy of a double-double for the DePaul transfer.
In the dying seconds of the contest, Henley was fouled as he made a layup, giving UNLV the lead, but missed the second free-throw shot, which gave the Bulldogs time to move the ball up the floor.
However, UNLV big Pape N’Diaye came up with a huge block to preserve the Rebel’s lead with 13 seconds left in the game, forcing Fresno State to foul Dedan “DJ” Thomas Jr.
The 7-foot big man from the Ivory Coast used all his size to contest the layup and force the block on Fresno State guard Zaon Collins, who attacked the rim.
In a one-and-one scenario, Thomas missed the free throw, putting the ball back in the Bulldogs’ hands with nine seconds left.
The final possession, Fresno State senior Jalen Weaver had an open corner shot from 3-point range as time expired but did not connect, finalizing a one-point win for UNLV.
The Bulldogs came into the game 5-20 overall and 10th in the Mountain West. UNLV, tied for sixth in the conference, entered only a few games back from a first-round bye in the conference tournament.
It was a rough first half in terms of shooting for UNLV. The team shot 28% from the field and 17% from 3-point range.
The Bulldogs ran a zone defense that stumped the Runnin’ Rebels. UNLV struggled and forced a plethora of tough shots. Fresno State forced 13 turnovers on the Rebels.
UNLV had seven total blocks, four of which came from Jeremiah “Bear” Cherry in the first half.
The team improved its lackluster shooting in the second half as the Runnin’ Rebels completed 42% of their field goals and 37% of their 3-point attempts.
The Runnin’ Rebels took their largest lead of the game, sparked by Bedford’s back-to-back three-point shots, putting the Rebels up by 11 points with eight minutes left in the game.
From there, UNLV was held scoreless for the next seven minutes, as the Bulldogs made the late-game surge to take a one-point lead with one minute remaining.
The Runnin’ Rebels won the rebounding battle, 45-40, and scored 16 points off second-chance efforts, which helped them hold on for the win.
“We will take the win every single time, any way we can get it,” Kevin Kruger said postgame. “Road games in this conference, especially with a team as talented and dangerous as Fresno State, I thought we did a lot of really good things that led to having that opportunity to win.”
Freshman forward Elijah Price led the Bulldogs in scoring. The freshman scored 15 points and 12 rebounds in his double-double performance Saturday night.
With the win, UNLV improved to 38-19 all-time versus Fresno State and completed the regular-season sweep for the second consecutive season.
UNLV, now winners of their last three, improved to 14-12 overall and 8-7 in Mountain West Conference play.
There are five regular season games left for Kruger and Co. before the conference tournament in Las Vegas. The team is two games back from securing a first-round bye in the tournament.
UNLV hosts a second-round regular-season matchup with Nevada and San Diego State, two more road trips for second-round matchups with San Jose State and the finale at New Mexico to round out its regular season.
The Runnin’ Rebels get a week off before hosting Colorado State, who is currently third in the Mountain West.
Up next, UNLV hosts Colorado State on Saturday in the second regular-season matchup between these teams.
