The Thomas Mack Center felt just like Laramie, minus about 5,000 feet of elevation. Hosting the MW Tournament isn’t any sort of home-court advantage for UNLV. Hasn’t been for some time.
Basketball
Senior Bryce Hamilton scored 22 points but it wasn’t enough as No. 5-seeded UNLV lost to No. 4 Wyoming Thursday in the quarterfinals of the Mountain West tournament at the Thomas & Mack Center.
UNLV’s women’s basketball team is NCAA Tournament bound for the first time since 2002, courtesy of three wins in three days during the conference tournament at Thomas Mack Center.
Essence Booker scored 25 points and hit a clutch 3-pointer in the final minute to lift UNLV to the Mountain West women’s tournament title and a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
The Rebels know the stakes, but are trying to take it one game at a time ahead of their Mountain West Tournament quarterfinal against Wyoming.
Junior Essence Booker scored 17 points Tuesday as No. 1-seeded UNLV beat No. 5 Air Force in the semifinals of the Mountain West Tournament at the Thomas & Mack Center.
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.
Sophomore reserve Nneka Obiazor scored 20 points as UNLV defeated Utah State on Monday in the quarterfinals of the Mountain West women’s basketball tournament.
Regular-season champion UNLV will play Utah State at noon Monday in the quarterfinals of the Mountain West women’s basketball tournament at the Thomas & Mack Center.
Las Vegas again will host to a plethora of college basketball beginning Wednesday with a record number of venues hosting 10 different conference tournaments.
For men’s basketball, the week tips off Monday with men’s basketball in the Maui Invitational and ends Friday with top-ranked Gonzaga meeting Duke at T-Mobile Arena.
In the coming months, Las Vegas will be a basketball Mecca with early-season tournaments and neutral-site games filling arenas around the city.
Turnover is coming for the UNLV basketball program, and it might not end with the players.
UNLV’s season ended Thursday after getting outscored by 21 points in the second half by Utah State in the quarterfinals of the Mountain West basketball tournament.
Former Rebels interim coach Todd Simon overcomes Big Sky peaks, valleys, obstacles to put Southern Utah in line for an NCAA Tournament berth.