How to watch UNLV basketball
- What: UNLV at Air Force
- When: Wednesday, 8 p.m.
- Where: Colorado Springs, Colo.
- TV: FS1
- Radio: 1100AM, 100.9FM
It took two tries, but UNLV made Air Force look like the worst team in the Mountain West tonight, as the visitors scored an easy 72-43 victory in Colorado Springs.
Rob Whaley was the driving force in this one, as the junior forward put up 15 points and seven rebounds in 22 minutes. The junior forward probably could have notched his first career double-double if the score was a little closer, but he sat for the final seven minutes as UNLV cruised to the finish line.
UNLV out-rebounded Air Force by a staggering 44-19 margin. The Scarlet and Gray also enjoyed a 40-22 advantage in points in the paint, largely due to Whaley's dominance.
UNLV improves to 15-10 overall and 8-5 in conference play. The win moves them ahead of Colorado State (8-6 MWC) for sixth place in the standings, and as fate would have it, those two teams will square off on Saturday when the Rams visit the Thomas & Mack Center.
UNLV extends lead to 20 at Air Force
The Scarlet and Gray are cruising, up by 20 and looking physically dominant in the process. With 11:59 remaining, UNLV has a 52-32 lead.
Rob Whaley has been a handful in the paint, pacing UNLV with 13 points and six rebounds while making 5-of-6 from the field and 3-of-4 from the free-throw line. Air Force doesn't have anyone capable of keeping him away from the basket.
Keylan Boone has chipped in 11 points, and the defense has held Air Force to 37.5% shooting, but none of that really matters. If the score tightens up at any point, UNLV will give the ball to Whaley and he'll put two points on the board.
UNLV leads Air Force at half, 37-24
UNLV isn't having much trouble with Air Force tonight, as the Scarlet and Gray enjoy a 37-24 lead at halftime.
Air Force was limited to 37.0% shooting in the first half, including a woeful 4-of-18 from 3-point range. That's a great half for the UNLV defense, especially considering AFA hung 90 points on them in the first meeting.
Keylan Boone has played with good energy, hitting from the outside and driving into the paint to tally a team-high nine points on 5-of-6 shooting. Rob Whaley also has seven points and a team-high six rebounds.
In a reverse of Saturday's loss to UNR, the Scarlet and Gray are dominating on the glass, as they've out-rebounded Air Force by a margin of 24-8. Air Force managed just one offensive rebound despite missing 17 shots (10-of-27).
UNLV led by 10 points with six minutes left in the half, but the Falcons got back-to-back 3-pointers from Ethan Taylor to cut into the deficit. D.J. Thomas drove for a layup to stop that run, then made two free throws on the next possession. After an Air Force miss, Luis Rodriguez drove for a bank shot to get the lead up to 13 points in the final minute.
Thomas has six points, four rebounds and an assist.
UNLV off to much better start at Air Force
It has only been a few minutes, but UNLV is already off to a much better start than the last game against Air Force. With 12:05 remaining in the first half, the Scarlet and Gray have a 14-10 lead.
When these teams met last month at the Thomas & Mack Center, Air Force ran out to a double-digit lead early in the first half, putting Kevin Kruger's squad on its heels. That hasn't happened tonight, as Kalib Boone has two dunks and Rob Whaley has two inside buckets, giving some life to the offense.
Air Force has taken 11 shots so far, and eight of them have come from 3-point range (2-of-8). UNLV has done a good job cleaning up the misses, as they've yet to allow an offensive rebound.
UNLV basketball looks to rebound at Air Force
It’s been four days since UNLV stumbled at the end of a last-second loss to UNR, and hopefully that’s enough time to recover, because there’s another big game looming on Wednesday when the Scarlet and Gray travel to take on Air Force (8 p.m., FS1).
Three keys to watch:
Air check
Under normal circumstances, a mid-February trip to last place Air Force would not loom so large. But the last time these teams met, the Falcons laid a brutal 90-58 beating on UNLV at the Thomas & Mack Center.
How bad was the loss from UNLV’s perspective? Well, it’s still the only conference victory Air Force has recorded this season (1-11). And had Kevin Kruger’s squad won that game, they’d be pushing for first place in the Mountain West standings; instead, they’re in seventh. That hurts.
So don’t expect UNLV to take this game lightly, as they admittedly did for the first meeting.
Petraitis check
Is UNLV capable of slowing down Rytis Petraitis?
In the first meeting, Air Force’s 6-foot-7 guard proved to be a problem matchup, to put it mildly. Petraitis played 38 minutes and absolutely torched the Scarlet and Gray with 18 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists, giving him a triple-double while shooting 7-of-11 from the field.
At the time, UNLV was struggling to find its defensive identity. Since then, senior wing Luis Rodriguez has emerged as an impact on-ball menace and will likely draw the assignment of slowing Petraitis for most of the night. If Rodriguez can keep him in check, UNLV’s chances of avenging the Jan. 23 meeting will go way up.
“He’s one of the best defenders in the country,” Kruger said of Rodriguez. “His size and mobility and athleticism has been a key factor for us all year.”
Standings watch
UNLV’s stunning loss to UNR was a painful blow in terms of the standings, but not a death blow.
At 7-5 in MWC play, UNLV is tied for sixth with UNR, and amazingly still only one game behind first place in the loss column, as both Utah State and San Diego State are 9-4.
Is it likely that UNLV can pass six teams in the next six games? Probably not. But passing two will be important, as the top five finishers receive a first-round bye in the conference tournament. UNLV swept fifth-place New Mexico, and will get another shot at sixth-place UNR, so if Kruger can get his team to start stacking wins again, a bye is not out of reach.
Who: UNLV (14-10, 7-5 MWC) vs. Air Force (8-16, 1-11 MWC)
When: Wednesday, 8 p.m.
Where: Clune Arena (Colorado Springs, Colo.)
TV: FS1
Radio: 1100 AM, 100.9 FM
UNLV leaders
Scoring
D.J. Thomas: 12.7 points
Rebounds
Luis Rodriguez: 6.7 rebounds
Assists
D.J. Thomas: 6.0 assists
Air Force leaders
Scoring
Beau Becker: 15.1 points
Rebounds
Rytis Petraitis: 6.2 rebounds
Assists
Rytis Petraitis: 3.9 assists
Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.
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