The trio of Desi-Rae Young, Justice Ethridge and Essence Booker pushed UNLV past San Diego State in the Mountain West semifinals Tuesday.
Basketball
UNLV showed its superior balance, depth and coaching in a victory over Utah State, but the Lady Rebels’ resume isn’t good enough to get an at-large NCAA Tournament bid.
UNLV advanced to meet No. 1 seed UNR by outlasting Air Force 97-90 in overtime of a Mountain West tournament first-round game Wednesday at the Thomas & Mack Center.
Utah State sent UNLV back up a snowy Interstate 15 to Salt Lake City to board its charter home a 79-63 loser, having turned a close game midway through the second half into a runaway.
Mountain West presidents switched from an 11 to an eight-team league tournament next year and they failed to inform their head coaches of the move after the coaches voted 11-0 against it.
In the bowels of a chilly Moby Arena, on a long wooden bench outside his team’s locker room Wednesday evening, Ben Carter lowered his head and sobbed. A teammate emerged to try to console him. Then a student manager. None could do so.
UNLV has concluded both preseason contests and the reviews are more positive than not, a team with definite depth and skill and an ability to put on the floor the sort of combinations that will make preparing for the Rebels a challenge.
Former Long Beach State head coach Max Good was hired this week as a special assistant to UNLV head coach Dave Rice, bringing to the Rebels a veteran presence the team has desperately needed since Rice assumed control of the program in 2011.
The message is bigger than a 3 or 4 seed in a conference tournament. It is much bigger than Bryce Dejean-Jones.
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