The UNLV Runnin’ Rebels continue to skid with a 71-62 loss to Boise State on Tuesday night at the Thomas & Mack Center.
Although the Runnin’ Rebels lost, three players scored in the double-digits.
Dedan Thomas, Jr. led the Runnin’ Rebels, scoring 20 points. Jeremiah Cherry scored 19, and Julian Rishwain dished out four assists and grabbed a career-high nine rebounds.
Boise State had four players score 13 or more points in the game.
Tyson Degenhart led the Broncos, scoring 16 points and added seven rebounds and three blocks.
Andrew Meadow was the Broncos’ second-leading scorer, scoring 14 points.
Alvaro Cardenas and Javan Buchanan each scored 13 points with eight rebounds.
RJ Keene had a career-high 10 rebounds, while Cardenas dished out a game-high six assists.
The first half had its share of back-and-forth between the two teams. There were six lead changes and five ties. At the end of the half, Boise State was leading 33-29.
After halftime, the Broncos came out and scored the first nine points of the second half to go up 42-29 with 16 minutes left in the game.
The Runnin’ Rebels turned up the heat on defense to go on a 6-0 run to trim the Broncos lead to 56-52 with less than five minutes to play in the game.
“Against a good team like Boise, we had a couple of lapses that ended up costing us. They did a good job of making us pay. Our confidence is rattled and we were a little hesitant. We just need that spark and it is going to turn things for the better,” UNLV coach Kevin Kruger said after the game, “When we were aggressive, when we made plays for each other, when we attacked the rim, when we did what we needed to do defensively, sliding and staying in front and knowing what each other wanted to do, we had some really good possessions. But just a couple of possessions with offensive rebounds and a good play made here or there is what made the difference for them.”
The Runnin’ Rebels will take on Wyoming on Saturday at 1 p.m. PT in Laramie, Wyoming.
