UNLV pulls away for victory

The Rebels surged ahead early in the second half and went on to a 77-59 victory over Southern Utah at the Centrum Arena in Cedar City on Tuesday night.

UNLV forced 25 turnovers in the contest and converted them into 28 points.

Tre’Von Willis led the way in his first appearance off the bench this season.

The junior had 16 points, four assists and four steals in 22 minutes of action, but was not in the starting lineup.

“We’re looking at a lot of different combinations,” UNLV head coach Lon Kruger said. “I thought Matt (Shaw) did a nice job starting out and Tre didn’t pick up two early fouls.”

Willis has seen his first half minutes limited in the last several games by early foul trouble.

“I was like, ‘Coach, I don’t know what I have to do to stay out of foul trouble,” Willis said.

Kruger said he wasn’t sure if the change would be permanent.

“Not necessarily,” he said. “We just have to make sure he can stay in the ballgame.”

Chace Stanback also had another solid effort.

The UCLA transfer had 15 points and three rebounds, marking his second straight double-figure scoring effort.

“I think I’m starting to get into rhythm. I’ve been working on (my shot) after practice,” said Stanback after making 3 of 4 3-point attempts. “Coach has been telling me to work on it and I’ve been working on it. It’s starting to fall for me.

“I think I was in a slump and I just had to shoot my way out.”

Willis agreed with that assessment.

“Chace is a shooter. He shouldn’t think twice,” Willis said. “He’s got to let it go.”

It wasn’t all good for UNLV, which led just 31-30 at the half.

The Rebels were out-rebounded, 43-48 in the game. The number led to 19 second-chance points by the Thunderbirds.

Southern Utah made two 3-pointers in the first two minutes of the game and then didn’t make another one in the final 38 minutes.

Big Run

UNLV opened the second half on a 23-6 run to take control of the game.

It was an impressive 8:30 stretch, but 10 seconds stood out from the rest.

Tre’Von Willis knocked down an open 3-pointer, then intercepted a pass from a pressured Thunderbird guard in the backcourt.

He took three dribbles and tossed up a beautiful alley-oop to Derrick Jasper, who threw down an emphatic dunk.

The sequence was indicative of what got UNLV the lead. The pressure defense and ball movement on offense improved dramatically after halftime and directly led to the big run.

“It was all defensive,” Willis said. “We wanted to apply some pressure and not let the be comfortable.”

Now, I’ve seen it all

There is an odd looking fellow sitting behind the UNLV basket with a duck.

It’s incredibly realistic looking, though obviously living wildlife wouldn’t be allowed into a basketball game even in a small town like Cedar City.

Somehow, whatever this thing his has very life-like movements.

The strange gentleman with the duck holds it up right behind the basket every time a Rebel player attempts a free throw.

That’s still not the strange part.

When he’s not holding it up, the guy continuously pets this thing. He has not stopped stroking this duck thing all night.

I have so many questions as to what is going on with this guy and his duck, but I am terrified to ask what’s going on with the situation.

Crowd noise

A slight majority of the fans in attendance at the game appeared to be in favor of the Rebels.

Many fans chose to make the drive up I-15 for the game.

That didn’t bother Southern Utah’s leading scorer Davis Baker, who had 21 points to lead the Thunderbirds.

“I try to tune out the crowd anyway,” said the senior who entered the game averaging 17 points per game. “It’s our floor. That’s all that matters to me.”

He said the boisterous crowd did make the game fun to play in, with each team’s fans cheering nearly every play.

Baker also said his team can learn from the loss.

“Obviously, they’re a very good basketball team and we played with them for awhile,” he said. “So, there’s a lot we can take from it.”

Close Cover

UNLV led 77-56 with less than two minutes to play, but Southern Utah scored the final three points of the game to get the final margin to 18 points.

The line was 19 at some places around town at times during the day, but closed at 18 or 17.5 at most books.

That’s why you have to shop for good lines.

Up next

The team is already on the bus headed back to Las Vegas and will practice tomorrow afternoon.

It will then host Weber State at the Thomas & Mack Center on Thursday night.

The Big Sky program is on a four-game winning streak that includes a win over Utah, but is just 1-3 on the road.

“Weber State’s good. We’re not looking past anybody,” Tre’Von Willis said. “We’ll get back in the gym tomorrow and get back to work.”