Rebels can’t keep up late, fall to Memphis — PHOTOS

The Rebels found out just how good the Tigers can be in those situations in the second half.

Memphis shot better than 70 percent from the field over the final 20 minutes of an 80-74 win over the Rebels, many of the baskets coming on the break or after collecting a loose ball.

“They did a good job speeding us up a little bit, then turned a couple turnovers into points, which ended up being the difference in the game,” UNLV coach Kevin Kruger said. “They’re elite when they’re out in space with speed, and that’s kind of what turned the tide of the game.”

Memphis (2-0) hit nine of its final 10 shots from the field and scored 24 points on its last 12 possessions.

“Just lack of communication, not being on the same page,” UNLV point guard Dedan Thomas Jr. said. “I thought we did a pretty good job defensively in the first half. We just weren’t on the same page in the second half. We have to fix that.”

Still, the Rebels (1-1) led for much of the final 20 minutes. The Tigers didn’t take their first second-half lead until a Dain Dainja dunk with 6:06 remaining.

The teams traded the lead for the next three minutes before Memphis reeled off a decisive 7-0 run, capped by a fast-break layup by Tyrese Hunter that became a three-point play when Julian Rishwain unsuccessfully tried to draw a charge in the paint.

Hunter’s three-point play gave the Tigers a 75-69 edge with 1:12 to play and was triggered by a long rebound from Jaden Henley’s 3-point attempt that could have tied the game for UNLV.

“We just couldn’t get a little more separation when we had the lead, and then they went on a run,” Kruger said.

They also couldn’t find an answer for Memphis guard PJ Haggerty, who hit 10 of 18 shots and finished with 29 points.

UNLV’s star guard also had a big day scoring, as Thomas finished with 22 points. The Tigers appeared to challenge Thomas to beat them with his scoring and limit his options as a playmaker, where he is usually so effective.

Thomas failed to record an assist for the first time in his career.

“It was nothing I hadn’t seen before,” the sophomore said. “I think they were just trying to take me out of the play. But I don’t mind giving the ball up because I trust my teammates to make the right play, which they did most of the time.

“I’ll adapt to it and figure out other ways to impact a game.”

He clearly made his presence felt. The Rebels played Memphis dead even in the 32 minutes he was on the floor, but were minus-6 in the other eight minutes.

One particularly damaging stretch came when Kruger tried to get Thomas one final breather after the media timeout with 7:10 remaining and UNLV leading by four.

Memphis went on a 6-0 run over 1:04 to take the lead on Dainja’s dunk, prompting Kruger to put Thomas back in the game.

While the Tigers got hot down the stretch, UNLV struggled to make some of the looks it had made earlier in the game. The Rebels made just one of their final five shots and went 3-for-13 down the stretch.

“I thought (Thomas) did a good job getting downhill and getting to the paint, and we were still scoring, just not quite at the rate we needed to kind of keep up,” Kruger said. “Because giving up 50 points in a half, we’re just not going to win many games doing that.”

UNLV led by as many as 12 points in the first half, largely on the strength of the defense and a big effort by Jalen Hill, who had 10 of his 14 points before the break.

Memphis closed to within four points at halftime and never again trailed by more than six.

Jeremiah “Bear” Cherry made all four of his shot attempts and had nine points and seven rebounds for the Rebels.

Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on X.