UNLV shows bid stealing potential by completing regular season sweep of Utah State
Will Despart
Host · Writer
LAS VEGAS – Kimani Hamilton scored a season-high 24 points and grabbed seven rebounds to lead UNLV to arguably the Runnin’ Rebels best win of the season, a 92-65 drubbing of first place Utah State at the Thomas & Mack Center on Tuesday.
Hamilton shot an efficient 10-of-14 from the field and made 1-of-4 attempts from deep, while freshman forward Tyrin Jones added 17 points off the bench on 8-of-10 shooting overall off the bench. Isaac Williamson chipped in 15 points (also off the bench), making 5-of-7 attempts from 3-point range in the win.
UNLV maintained a narrow lead for most of the first half, but a strong finish to the frame allowed the Runnin’ Rebels to carry a 32-24 lead into halftime. And the message coach Josh Pastner gave his guys at the break must have given them supreme motivation, because the second half was even more of a statement. UNLV outscored Utah State 60-41 after the break and finished with more points scored than any of Utah State’s previous opponents this season, even topping the 86 points that the Runnin’ Rebels scored the first time around in Logan to start the New Year.
Perhaps the most impressive part of UNLV’s performance on Tuesday was the fact that the Runnin’ Rebels managed to pull away despite a lackluster night from Mountain West Player of the Year frontrunner Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn, who was held to just 10 points on 3-of-8 shooting in the win. Entering Tuesday’s game, Gibbs-Lawhorn was averaging 29.2 points per game over the last month and was shooting the 3-pointer as well as anyone in the country.
For as much hype as the 2023-24 UNLV team got for having bid stealing potential entering the Mountain West tournament, it’s not at all crazy to believe this UNLV team is in even better shape to potentially shock the world at the Mountain West tournament next week. For starters, the Mountain West is nowhere near the beast it was two seasons ago, but UNLV also has an intriguing level of talent that hasn’t quite been utilized to the fullest in Pastner’s maiden voyage with the Runnin’ Rebels.
Regardless, earning the season sweep over first-place Utah State proves that UNLV isn’t a team that can simply be brushed aside as a stepping stone during the conference tournament. Utah State will certainly be looking to avoid them, and it’s hard to imagine San Diego State would be too thrilled with seeing the Runnin’ Rebels early on either after the Aztecs could only split the season series themselves.
UNLV finishes the regular seasons at New Mexico on Saturday, where they will look to avoid a season sweep after falling 89-61 in the first meeting at the Thomas & Mack Center in January.
