Rebels’ Thomas in right spot for UNLV’s win over California

BERKELEY, Calif. - Everything happened so fast that Quintrell Thomas was unsure how he ended up playing the role of UNLV's unlikely hero.

"I can't even remember the play," the senior forward said.

It's one he won't soon forget. He recalled watching Anthony Marshall attempt a 15-foot jumper that was destined to fall short of the rim, and, with time close to expiring, Thomas noticed he had a shot to fix a broken play.

"I saw it was going to be an airball," he said. "I was surprised I beat the clock."

Thomas snatched Marshall's errant shot out of the air before spinning to hook in the winning layup with 1.2 seconds remaining as the 21st-ranked Rebels survived to defeat California 76-75 on Sunday at Haas Pavilion.

UNLV (7-1) won its second road game in six days, but lost junior forward Mike Moser to an elbow injury in the process.

"It was a pretty great win," said freshman forward Anthony Bennett, who did a lot of the Rebels' heavy lifting with a 25-point, 13-rebound performance.

Thomas was on the floor to finish only because Moser was not. Less than five minutes into the game, Moser hit the floor in pursuit of a loose ball, and his right arm was bent awkwardly after a Golden Bears player toppled over him. Face down and in pain, Moser was helped to his feet and escorted to the locker room. He briefly returned to the bench wearing a sling to support a dislocated elbow.

Moser, UNLV's No. 2 scorer and leading rebounder, missed Tuesday's game at Portland with a strained left hip.

"Mike's had very bad luck this week. I feel terrible for him," coach Dave Rice said. "We might not have Mike for some time."

In his absence, Bennett, Marshall, Bryce Dejean-Jones and, finally, Thomas did their parts to fill in on the offensive end.

"Obviously, Bennett was a monster," Cal coach Mike Montgomery said.

The Rebels held a nine-point lead early in the second half before their offense bogged down against the Bears' zone. Dejean-Jones' 3-pointer put UNLV up 66-60 with 6:21 remaining, but Cal responded with a rally.

"We slowed them down. The talk was about them not being great against the zone," Montgomery said. "I think had it not been for Jones, they really would have struggled. Jones came up big shooting the ball."

Bennett made two free throws to tie the score at 70 with 1:36 to go. After Robert Thurman scored inside for the Bears, Bennett drove baseline and dunked to tie it again with one minute left.

Dejean-Jones, who scored a season-high 22 points, fouled out with 39 seconds to play. Allen Crabbe, who had hit 87.5 percent of his free throws on the season, hit 1 of 2 at the line for Cal.

Bennett answered with a baseline jumper to give the Rebels a 74-73 edge with 22 seconds to play. The Bears went back ahead by one on Justin Cobbs' two free throws with 11 seconds left.

On the Rebels' final play, Thomas screened for Marshall as he brought the ball up the floor. Rice put freshman guard Katin Reinhardt in one corner, Bennett on the baseline and told Marshall to "go create." The play did not go off as planned, and Marshall pulled the trigger on a tightly contested shot that fell short.

"It was a great play for Quintrell, and a great finish," Rice said. "Sometimes basketball just comes down to one play. We were fortunate, but at the same time we made our luck."

Marshall scored all of his 13 points in the first half, and UNLV led 45-38 despite Cal's hot field-goal shooting (17 of 26, 65.4 percent).

Crabbe finished with 18 points and was one of four scorers in double figures for the Bears (6-2), who missed 13 free throws.

Bennett, who impressed the handful of NBA scouts in attendance, was a big reason for the Rebels' success. He shot 9-for-17 from the field and 7-for-11 at the line.

"We know Anthony's going to have a long career at the next level," Rice said. "We're just happy he's here with us as long as he's here."

But it was Thomas, with four points and six rebounds off the bench, who rescued the Rebels by being in the right place at the right time.

"It's definitely a good senior moment," Thomas said. "Sometimes, you improvise and it works. Sometimes, you've just got to escape, and that's what we came out here and did."

Contact reporter Matt Youmans at myoumans@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2907. Follow him on Twitter: @mattyoumans247.