Lady Rebels drop Utes with big rally
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
The UNLV women's basketball team rallied from 13 points down in the final 8½ minutes, finishing with a 19-2 run Saturday to beat Utah 51-47 at Cox Pavilion in the regular-season finale.
With the Lady Rebels (11-19, 4-12 Mountain West Conference) down 45-32, Ta'Nitra Byrd started the run by scoring five straight points, and Erica Helms followed with two free throws and a 3-pointer to make it 45-42. Two Kelli Thompson free throws and a Helms layup put UNLV up 46-45 with 1:51 left, and Thompson's layup made it 48-45 before Utah finally scored again with 57 seconds left.
Thompson hit two more free throws, and Helms (15 points) hit another foul shot to close out the rally.
In the MWC tournament, UNLV will be seeded eighth, opening against fifth-seeded Utah at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Thomas & Mack Center.
