A sleepy start, then a statement
UNLV shook off a sluggish first half and stormed past Air Force 91-66 on Saturday afternoon at Clune Arena, riding a blistering second half to a needed Mountain West road win.
The Rebels led just 34-31 at the break after shooting 2 of 10 from 3 and trading leads in a choppy opening 20 minutes. Air Force had 11 lead changes and six ties with UNLV before the game finally broke open.
The triple-double that flipped the floor
Howie Fleming Jr. authored the cleanest line of the day: 10 points, 10 rebounds and a career-high 10 assists with zero turnovers. It was UNLV’s first triple-double since 2020 and a rare one for the program, and it fueled a second-half offense that stopped settling and started slicing.
Kimani Hamilton led UNLV with 27 points on 11-of-19 shooting, adding two steals. Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn scored 21 points in 30 minutes, drilling 4 of 5 from 3 and going a perfect 3 of 3 at the line. UNLV finished with 21 assists on 36 made shots and committed only four turnovers.
A second-half avalanche
Air Force briefly nudged ahead early in the second half, but UNLV answered with a decisive run and never let the Falcons breathe again. The Rebels outscored Air Force 57-35 after halftime and shot 23 of 29 from the field in the second half, including 7 of 8 from 3. UNLV finished at 60% overall and 50% from deep.
UNLV also cashed in on pressure, forcing 15 turnovers and turning them into 14 points. Walter Brown had four steals, and the Rebels won the paint 46-32 while getting 29 bench points.
Air Force was led by Lucas Hobin’s 19 points and Kam Sanders’ 18 points and nine assists. The Falcons won the second-chance battle 16-4, but UNLV’s shot-making erased it.
The win moved UNLV to 14-13 overall and 9-7 in the Mountain West.
Up Next
UNLV is back home Tuesday for a Mountain West game against Utah State at 8 p.m. PT at the Thomas & Mack Center. The game airs on CBS Sports Network.
The Rebels then close the regular season Friday at San Diego State at 7 p.m. PT, also on CBS Sports Network.
UNLV’s next stop after that is the Mountain West Championship, set for March 11-14 in Las Vegas.
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Dice City Sports editor Mark Hebert covers the Vegas Golden Knights, Las Vegas Raiders, Athletics, and UNLV baseball and softball. He has 24 years of journalism experience, is also a senior reporter at Exhibit City News, and previously covered the Dallas Stars and Texas Rangers. Follow him on X or connect on LinkedIn.
