Provided Content from UNLV Athletics
LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – The UNLV men’s basketball team (13-12, 7-7) won its second straight game with a 77-52 victory over Air Force (3-22, 0-14) Tuesday night at the Thomas & Mack Center.
The win gave the Runnin’ Rebels the regular-season sweep over the Falcons.
Five UNLV players scored in double figures, led by Bear Cherry’s 15 points on a perfect 6 of 6 from the field. Julian Rishwain scored 13 points, while Jailen Bedford, Brooklyn Hicks and Jaden Henley all had 11.
Air Force was led by Luke Kearney’s 17 points and six rebounds.
TURNING POINT: After the game was tied 10-10 with 12:34 to play in the first half, UNLV pushed its lead to 14 (29-15) with 6:27 until halftime and led by 22 (44-22) at the break.
STATS OF THE GAME: UNLV shot 60.7% (17 of 28) from the field in the first half and held Air Force to just 32.1% (18 of 56) for the game.
QUOTABLE: “Really happy and proud of our group. We had a good two days of prep. We had to turn around pretty quickly and start getting ready for Air Force mentally, which is tough. Our guys did a great job from the start of setting the tone and making things difficult for them. We had a lot of deflections. The energy level was there and it was combined with the mental approach that was needed, so it ended up being a good night for us.” – UNLV head coach Kevin Kruger
OTHER NOTES:
UNLV improved to 49-16 all-time vs. Air Force, including 35-3 at home.
– UNLV has now won 15 of its last 16 against the Falcons at the Thomas & Mack Center.
– UNLV has won six of its last seven overall against Air Force and 11 of its last 13.
– It was UNLV’s third straight win over Air Force.
– Dedan Thomas Jr. scored just seven points, but he had a game-high five assists.
– Bedford tallied a game-high-tying six rebounds.
– UNLV won the rebounding battle, 33-29.
– UNLV scored 17 points off Air Force’s 11 turnovers, led in points in the paint, 46-22, and in bench scoring, 28-18.
– Hicks had 10 of his points in the first half, also contributing three steals.
– Air Force was just 21.9% on 3-pointers for the game (7 of 32).
– UNLV shot 54.7% on the night (29 of 53), including 40% on 3-pointers (6 of 15).
– UNLV held the lead for 38:12 of the game.
– UNLV has made at least one 3-pointer in a NCAA-record 1,252 straight games.
NEXT FOR THE RUNNIN’ REBELS: UNLV will play at Fresno State on Saturday, Feb. 15. The 4 p.m. game will be broadcast on the Mountain West Network and ESPN Radio Las Vegas.
TICKETS: Tickets to UNLV men’s basketball home games at the Thomas & Mack Center may be purchased at UNLVtickets.com, by calling 702-739-3267 or by visiting the Thomas & Mack Center Box Office.
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