3 takeaways from Rebels’ win: 5-game losing streak over

The UNLV men’s basketball team’s last meeting with Wyoming went down to the wire, and the Rebels showed on Saturday that they learned from that experience.

Leading by as many as 15 points in the final minutes, UNLV cruised to a 68-57 win at Arena-Auditorium in Laramie, Wyoming.

The victory snapped a five-game losing streak for the Rebels (12-12, 6-7 Mountain West) that began with a home loss to the Cowboys on Jan. 21.

“Great fight from start to finish,” UNLV coach Kevin Kruger said after Saturday’s effort. “And I think just in large part because of the respect that the guys carried over from playing Wyoming a couple weeks ago. (Knowing) how hard they were going to play, and how physical and together they play.”

Point guard Dedan Thomas Jr. led UNLV with 18 points.

Guard Obi Agbim led the Cowboys (11-13, 4-9) with 14 points.

Here are three takeaways from the win:

1. Thomas takeover

When UNLV lost to Wyoming last month, Thomas missed a shot that would have tied it at the final buzzer.

This time around, he had an answer every time the Cowboys made a push.

Thomas closed a first half that featured five ties and five lead changes with a flashy drive to the basket and an up-and-under finish at the buzzer. The play allowed the Rebels to enter halftime with a 30-23 lead.

He shot 6-for-13 from the field and 5-for-6 from the free-throw line as his heroics continued into the second half.

“I think we’re just just that tired of losing, wanting to start a streak of wins, and we were hungry tonight,” Thomas said. “Won the rebounding battle (34-32), and I just fought tonight.”

When asked about what else worked for him in the matchup, Thomas said he felt like he had a “size advantage” that allowed him to get to the basket easier to score and make opportunities for his teammates.

2. Supporting players

Three other Rebels scored in double figures.

Guard Jailen Bedford recorded 14 points off the bench, while guard Julian Rishwain added 11 points in a performance that saw him try more interior scoring. He went 2-for-4 from the 3-point line.

Guard Jaden Henley’s effort stood out. He scored 13 points and had two second-half steals that helped the Rebels pull away. They opened the second half on a 7-2 run to go up 37-25.

“He got us going defensively, but he also got us going offensively,” Thomas said of Henley. “He was big on both sides.”

3. Confidence-builder?

UNLV picked a good time to get back to .500. There are just seven games remaining in the season, and the Rebels’ schedule offers them a shot to finish strong and battle for a bye in the Mountain West tournament.

UNLV next plays Air Force at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Thomas & Mack Center and will then travel to face Fresno State on Feb. 15. The upcoming opponents are at the bottom of the league standings, just behind Wyoming.

Kruger seems to like his team’s odds, alluding to the combined 15-point differential that decided four of the losses in the Rebels’ five-game skid.

“It’s not like we’ve been playing terrible basketball. We’ve just been on the wrong side of a couple of them,” he said. “We’re not coming off that streak that we were on, so hopefully it gets our confidence going.”

Contact Callie Fin at cfin@reviewjournal.com. Follow @CallieJLaw on X.