UNLV under .500 for 2nd time in first 3 games ahead of trip to Memphis

One win with head coach Josh Pastner at the helm couldn’t turn into two as UNLV reverted back to its bad habits from its season-opening loss in another head-scratching setback most recently.

The Runnin’ Rebels lost to the Montana Grizzlies, 102-93, Tuesday, Nov. 11 from the Thomas & Mack Center. The outing comes just four days after the program scored 100 points against a Division-I school for the first time since 2017.

In their two losses this season, UNLV has allowed 94 points on average by its opponents.

The last two opponents for the Rebels consisted of an NCAA Tournament team in Montana and the champions of the NIT last season in Chattanooga in the team’s last outing.

Tuesday marked the end of a three-game homestand to open the new year for UNLV as it went 1-2 in the process.

The Rebels have their first true road game Sunday, Nov. 16 against the Memphis Tigers. Last season, UNLV suffered a late slip-up and fell, 80-74, at home last season to the Penny Hardaway-led team.

UNLV was caught on its heels again in its loss to Montana similar to the way it was in the team’s season-opening loss to UT Martin. The Grizzlies went up eight points early in the first half behind an 11-0 run where the home team was held scoreless for more than three minutes.

Things really turned in the second half when the Rebels went down by double-digits. Even a 7-0 run after falling behind by 12 points wasn’t enough for the home team to regain its footing.

Ultimately, UNLV trailed by as many as 15 points. Moreover, the team was outshot by Montana, 55-51%.

In addition, the visitors shot 6-of-16 from three-point range while holding the Rebels to a frigid 6-of-26 mark from deep.

While also being outrebounded, UNLV committed 25 fouls that resulted in 24 made free throws. In both losses this season, the team has allowed 41 total points from the charity stripe.

On the other hand, the Rebels couldn’t make the most of their free throw attempts, going 17-of-27 from the line.

Redshirt senior guard Howie Fleming Jr. picked up two fouls before the first media timeout and would rack up three fouls in five first half minutes. He eventually fouled out in 10 minutes of action.

Senior forward Kimani Hamilton led all Rebel scorers with 12 points in the first half on 6-of-9 from the field. In the second half, he didn’t have nearly as much success.

Hamilton added four more points on 1-of-2 shooting. His lone second half bucket came at the 7:50-mark.

Freshman guard Isaac Williamson made his UNLV debut as well after dealing with a foot injury. It was a fast start for him with four points in his first five minutes of college basketball before finishing with six points in the first half.

Williamson ended the game with 11 points on 4-of-9 shooting.

Junior guard Dravyn Gibbs-Lawhorn scored a career-high 26 points in the loss after struggling in the team’s last contest. This performance came four nights after posting 13 points on 4-of-7 from the floor.

After leading the team in scoring with a career-high 25 points last game, redshirt freshman forward Naas Cunningham added 13 more points on 3-for-9 shooting from the field.

Junior forward Ladji Dembele was the final player in double-figures with 10 points on 4-of-11 shooting in 30 minutes on the floor.