RECAP

In Albuquerque, the Runnin’ Rebels came in as 5.5 point underdogs with the Lobos coming off the upset lost to Fresno State in Fresno this past week. To stay relevant in the Mountain West, the Rebels needed to come away with the win in this game.

The game started with the Lobos coming out hot. They were up 8-0 quick in the first half. The Rebels first points came four minutes into the game with a G EJ Harkness jumper. On their next possession, Harkness drew a foul on a shot and made both free throws.

The rest of the half was back and forth with the Lobos keeping around a 6-10 point lead. They keep this lead up until the end of the first half where G Jordan McCabe came up with some clutch points to bring the Rebels back within a few points.

G Luis Rodriguez hit a shot from behind the arc with 44 seconds left to put the Rebels within one of the lead, but the Lobos made two quick shots just before the buzzer to put them up 5 going into halftime.

After the first half the score was 43-38, Lobos lead.

The second half started with a Rebels score after G Keshon Gilbert got a steal and brought it back to the other side of the court for two points. Harkness then, a few possessions later, knocked down a three to tie the ball game up.

After a blocked layup, Rodriguez got the offensice board and threw down a pivotal dunk to give the Rebels their first lead of the game. On the next possession the Rebels defense comes up big again with another Gilbert steal that led to more points for Rodriguez has he makes a layup to give the Rebels a 4-point lead. This capped off their 9-0 run to start the second half.

UNLV kept the offensive show going has they were able to keep the lead in the second half throughout the whole half. The biggest lead they had was 7 points, which was how much they won by.

Final score, 84-77 Rebels win.

UNLV stars showed out as Harkness had 25 points, Gilbert with some huge defensive plays, and McCabe having 12 points off the bench.

Stats

• G EJ Harkness - 25 PTS 6 REB 5 AST 1 STL 1 BLK
• G Keshon Gilbert - 14 PTS 3 REB 5 AST 4 STL
• G Luis Rodriguez - 12 PTS 6 REB 2 AST
• G Jordan McCabe - 12 PTS 2 REB 1 STL
• C David Muoka - 11 PTS 7 REB 2 BLK

NEXT GAME

Next the Rebels will be back at home against the very tough Boise State Broncos. Boise State just lost to the other school in Nevada so the Rebels are hoping to make Boise State 0-2 in the state of Nevada this year. The game will be at 8:00 PM PST or 11:00 PM EST on Wednesday, January 11th.

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