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LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) – After stunning then-No. 22 Utah State on Wednesday night at the Thomas & Mack Center and shutting down San Diego State on Saturday in San Diego, the UNLV men’s basketball team (11-7, 5-2) will return home to host Wyoming on Tuesday, Jan. 21. The 8 p.m. game will be nationally televised on CBS Sports Network.
The Runnin’ Rebels opened league action with an 87-77 home win over Fresno State, a 77-58 road victory at Air Force and a 79-73 home win over San Jose State, before dropping two straight road games at Boise State, 81-59, and at Colorado State, 84-62. However, UNLV snapped its short losing streak with its 65-62 win against the Aggies and won its second in a row with the 76-68 victory over the Aztecs.
The Runnin’ Rebels, who have won seven of their last 10 games, are tied for third in the Mountain West standings. UNLV is 8-1 at the Thomas & Mack Center this season.
UNLV has three players averaging double figures in scoring, led by Dedan Thomas Jr.’s 15.8 points per game. Jaden Henley, Jailen Bedford, Jeremiah “Bear” Cherry. Julian Rishwain and Jalen Hill are all averaging between 7.7 ppg and 11.5 ppg. Cherry leads in rebounding with 5.3 rpg and blocks with 1.6 bpg (3rd in MW), while Thomas Jr. is the team’s assist leader with 4.5 apg (3rd in MW) and Rishwain leads in steals with 1.5 spg.
UNLV is in its fourth season under head coach Kevin Kruger. He has a career record of 69-47 (.595).
TICKETS: Tickets to UNLV men’s basketball home games are on sale at UNLVtickets.com, by calling 702-739-FANS (3267) or by visiting the Thomas & Mack Center Box Office.
ABOUT THE ROSTER: This season’s UNLV squad features six returners from last year’s team along with 10 newcomers. The newcomers are made up of four Division I transfers, a junior college transfer and five freshmen. UNLV has eight upperclassmen, including two sixth-year players. A total of six players on the roster are playing in their hometown of Las Vegas. The Runnin’ Rebels returned two starters in sophomore guard Dedan Thomas Jr., who was the Mountain West Co-Freshman of the Year last season and was named to this season’s preseason all-conference team, and senior forward Rob Whaley Jr. (currently injured) Forward Jalen Hill is also back for a sixth year of college after suffering a season-ending knee injury last January (in the MW opener at San Diego State). Thomas Jr. led UNLV in scoring and assists last year with 13.6 and 5.1 per game, respectively, Whaley Jr. had averages of 7.6 ppg and 3.6 rpg, while Hill averaged 10.7 ppg and 6.1 rpg in seven contests.
LAST TIME OUT: In Saturday’s win at San Diego State, UNLV led for the majority of the game, including the entire second half. It was the Runnin’ Rebels’ first win in San Diego since 2020. Dedan Thomas Jr. led UNLV with 19 points and five assists, while Brooklyn Hicks added 13 points and Jaden Henley scored 12. UNLV held off multiple SDSU runs, including at the end of the game as Byrd made a 3-pointer with under two minutes to play to cut SDSU’s deficit to four points (67-63). Thomas Jr. responded by driving the lane to find Bear Cherry for an alley-oop dunk. Byrd scored on a layup, but Thomas Jr. came right back to hit a tough turnaround fadeaway from the baseline to make it 71-65 with less than a minute to go. Byrd then missed one and made one from the free-throw line and Thomas Jr. made two free throws with 37 seconds to go to effectively seal the game. Thomas Jr. scored eight of UNLV’s final 11 points. UNLV out-rebounded San Diego State, 37-32, and held the Aztecs to just 40% shooting from the field (24 of 60).
ABOUT WYOMING: The Cowboys come to Las Vegas having lost three straight games: vs. New Mexico (61-53), at Boise State (96-55) and vs. Colorado State (79-63). Prior to that, Wyoming had won two of three: a win vs. UNR (66-63), a loss vs. Boise State (67-58) and a win at Air Force (70-65). Wyoming is 2-4 in true road games this season. The Cowboys are led in scoring by Obi Agbim, who is averaging 18.8 ppg (2nd in MW). Jordan Nesbitt is the team’s leading rebounder with 7.2 rebounds per game, while Agbim leads in assists with 3.2 apg, field-goal percentage (.519, 3rd in MW) and 3-point field-goal percentage (.462, 1st in MW). Wyoming was predicted to finish ninth in the Mountain West this season in the preseason coaches’ poll. The Cowboys had an overall record of 15-17 last season, finishing eighth in the MW with a league mark of 8-10. UW has 10 upperclassmen on its 16-man roster. Head coach Sundance Wicks is in his first season at Wyoming and fourth overall as a collegiate head coach. He was at Green Bay during the 2023-24 season and at Missouri Western from 2018-20. He has a career record of 57-55 (.509).
BROADCAST INFO: Tuesday’s game will be televised nationally on CBS Sports Network with John Sadak and Tre Demps calling the action. Matt Neverett, former Runnin’ Rebel Curtis Terry and Steve Cofield will handle the call on radio, which may be heard on ESPN Radio 1100 in Las Vegas and worldwide on SiriusXM 381. All streaming links and live stats are available at UNLVRebels.com and through the UNLV Rebels App.
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