Sunday, February 13, 2005
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

STUNNING COMEBACK: Rebels pull off long shot

Terry's 3-pointer caps wild rally, sets up OT win

By STEVE CARP
REVIEW-JOURNAL

UNLV freshman Curtis Terry shoots a tying 3-pointer at the buzzer in regulation Saturday at San Diego State. The Rebels went on to win in overtime after trailing by 18 points in the second half and by 10 with 28.5 seconds left. Photo by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS UNLV players celebrate after San Diego State's Chris Walton (3) missed a free throw with 1.4 seconds left in the Rebels' OT win.* Photo by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

SAN DIEGO -- Incredible.

That's probably the most accurate way to describe UNLV's 93-91 overtime victory Saturday over San Diego State.

The Rebels cut an 18-point second-half deficit to three with 1:45 left, only to trail by 10 with 28.5 seconds left. But somehow UNLV managed to pull even, with freshman Curtis Terry hitting an off-balance 3-pointer from the right wing at the buzzer, tying the game at 82 and forcing overtime.

In the extra period, the Rebels got big defensive plays from Ricky Morgan and Odartey Blankson and a big break when the Aztecs' Chris Walton launched an airball on a free throw.

That helped UNLV (11-11, 3-6) get back to .500 with its first Mountain West Conference road victory this season.

"I don't know how we came back," said Blankson, who shook off a slow first half to finish with 23 points, 13 from the free-throw line. "But it feels good to get a win like this on the road. This lets us know we can never give up."

Michael Umeh, who had a career-high 22 points, said: "That was a great, great effort by everyone. When things got sideways, the guys stayed positive."

Coach Lon Kruger said he couldn't have been prouder of his team.

"I've been coaching and playing for 35 years and I don't think I've seen a comeback like that," Kruger said. "I'm thrilled for our guys. But at the same time, I feel bad for Steve (Fisher) and his players."

Down the hall from where the Rebels were celebrating, the Aztecs (10-12, 4-5) were still in a daze. They couldn't believe this monumental collapse had happened, and neither could the 5,897 fans inside Cox Arena.

"What couldn't happen with a minute to go, we all saw happen," Fisher said. "This was a game you could replay a thousand times and you can't lose it. But we did."

Maybe if San Diego State's Marcus Slaughter hadn't been celebrating with a minute left, Fisher's team could have kept its focus. But the Rebels saw Slaughter's gesturing to the crowd and used it as motivation.

"I saw him raising his hands," Blankson said. "But you can't stop playing until the game is over."

Slaughter finished with 25 points and 10 rebounds.

"As a team, we got confident and celebrated too early," said Brandon Heath, who had 29 points, hitting 17 of 17 from the free-throw line. "The game doesn't end until the horn rolls."

The way things were going for UNLV, the horn couldn't have come soon enough. The Rebels were rattling off 3-point shots and missing nearly every one.

San Diego State led by seven at halftime and seized control with an early 10-2 spurt. The Aztecs pushed the lead to 55-37, and though 12:26 remained, the Rebels appeared to be finished.

Instead, they battled back. A 15-2 run got UNLV back in the game as San Diego State went more than nine minutes without a field goal. But Heath kept going to the line in the final 1:35 and hitting his free throws.

But UNLV had an answer, as it started to hit its 3-pointers. Umeh connected from the left corner. Terry hit from the right corner twice in a nine-second span. Jerel Blassingame dropped one in with 7.6 seconds left.

After the Aztecs' Trimaine Davis made one of two foul shots with 5.6 seconds left, Terry capped the comeback by spinning away from Tyler Smith and launching his game-tying shot.

"I saw there was 0.8 on the clock -- which is cutting it close, too close for comfort," said Terry, who scored 17 points off the bench. "But it felt good leaving my hand and it was on line. I thought it was going in."

It did, giving the Rebels momentum as overtime began.

They got a steal from Morgan that led to a basket for a 92-91 lead. Blankson deflected Walton's inbounds pass with 40 seconds and Louis Amundson grabbed the ball for the Rebels. That led to Morgan being fouled and making one of two free throws.

"I think I faked him out," Blankson said of Walton's inbounds gaffe. "I think he thought I wasn't watching. But I was."

With UNLV clinging to a 93-91 lead, Walton was fouled with 1.4 seconds left. A 50 percent free-throw shooter this season, Walton could have tied the game, but his shot fell well short of the mark. He intentionally missed the second free throw, but Amundson grabbed the rebound and time expired.

"We knew we had to keep scrapping and fighting," Umeh said. "We did and we were rewarded."

• NOTE -- UNLV senior forward Romel Beck suited up but missed his third consecutive game with a sprained right ankle.