Pastner picks up resume-building win for UNLV in return to Memphis

UNLV men’s basketball wiped away a sour taste in its mouth that’s lasted since last season with its first potential resume-building win of the season 

The Runnin’ Rebels beat the Memphis Tigers, 92-78, on the road from FedEx Forum Sunday, Nov. 16 in the team’s first road game of the year following a 1-2 homestand to open the new campaign. Last season, UNLV was defeated by six points at the Thomas & Mack Center after leading with less than 10 minutes left in the second half.

To make matters more personal for the Rebels, first-year head coach Josh Pastner had a homecoming of sorts after coaching Memphis for seven years from 2009-2016.

Now with a 2-2 overall record, UNLV will return to Las Vegas for the next three games, possibly four depending on the outcome of the Players Era Men’s Championship which is set to begin next week.

Until then, the Rebels have the Saint Joseph’s Hawks on the schedule for Thursday, Nov. 20 from the Thomas & Mack Center with a 7 p.m. tip time.

A quick 5-0 start by Memphis was wiped away by a 14-3 run over the next couple of minutes by UNLV as the team kept its foot on the gas pedal this time around.

In the first half, the Rebels had shooting stretches of five straight makes, three straight makes and then four straight makes on the way to shooting 16-for-29 from the field in the first half.

At one point of the second half, UNLV had a field goal percentage 10% better than the home team as it ultimately shot 50% from the floor in the win.

The Rebels forced 18 total turnovers before turning those into 30 points off turnovers in the other direction. In addition, the team racked up 23 fast break points as a result of the intense defense.

UNLV went on to lead for nearly 38 minutes of the 40-minute game including leading the entire second half. Moreover, it led by as many as 21 points including a 16-point lead in the first half.

Freshman guard Isaac Williamson put the team up by 19 and 21 points respectively on a pair of threes in the second half on his way to career-performance in just his second collegiate showing.

Williamson also drilled a big three-pointer after Memphis trimmed the once 21-point deficit to just eight points. He accounted for six of the team’s seven made threes on the night. A night that saw the team miss 11 straight threes at one point of the victory.

After a lineup shakeup that saw junior forward Ladji Dembele miss the game after flaring up his foot strain injury, lone returner Jacob Bannarbie got the start in addition to Williamson, who started for senior guard Al Green.

Williamson went on to start the game with makes on his first three field goal attempts on his way to 11 first half points and 25 for the game.

It was not a singular 25-point performance for the Rebels as senior guard Howie Fleming Jr. had a career-defining night as well. After averaging just 7.3 points per game in his career, he recorded a career-high 21 points in the first half on 8-of-10 shooting.

Fleming would finish the game with a 25-point, 12-rebound double-double, the fifth of his career.

Senior forward Kimani Hamilton scored 13 points in the win but went to the back briefly in the second half appearing to favor his left knee. He’d return to the sidelines and eventually the court not long after.

Freshman forward Tyrin Jones reached double-figures for the first time in his collegiate career, posting a career-high 14 points in 22 minutes of action.

As a result of both efforts, UNLV went on to win the points in the paint battle, 50-40.