Dedan Thomas Jr. Named Mountain West Men’s Basketball Player Of The Week For First Time

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Thomas Jr. led the Runnin’ Rebels to two upset wins last week: at home over No. 22 Utah State (65-62) on Wednesday and on the road at San Diego State (76-68) on Saturday.

The Las Vegas native averaged 13.5 points per game, while dishing out 5.5 assists per contest. He shot over 90% from the free-throw line, collected 2.5 rebounds per game and had an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.2.

Against the Aggies, Thomas Jr. scored eight points with six assists (no turnovers) and collected four rebounds. Although he was 4 of 14 from the field, two of his baskets came at the most critical time to secure the win for his team. The Runnin’ Rebels closed the game on a 7-0 run: after a 3-pointer by Julian Rishwain to cut their deficit to one point, Thomas Jr. made a tough transition layup to put UNLV up by a point with just under two minutes left, and then he capped it with a fadeaway jumper with 15.4 seconds left to create the final three-point margin.

The win against Utah State was UNLV’s first over a ranked team this season and its eighth win in its last 12 games against Top 25 opponents. It also pushed UNLV’s record to 8-1 at home this season, while also snapping a six-game losing streak to Utah State.

On Saturday against the Aztecs in San Diego, Thomas Jr. led the Runnin’ Rebels in scoring with 19 points and had a game-high five assists. He was clutch from the free-throw line, making all 10 of his attempts. Thomas Jr. scored eight of UNLV’s final 11 points of the game, all in the final 2:07. It was UNLV’s first win in San Diego since 2020.

UNLV (11-7, 5-2) has won seven of its last 10 games and is tied for third in the Mountain West standings.

Although Thomas Jr. has earned multiple awards and recognition from the conference in the past, this is his first Player of the Week Award. It is also the first for the Runnin’ Rebels this season.

NEXT FOR THE RUNNIN’ REBELS: UNLV will host Wyoming on Tuesday, Jan. 21 at the Thomas & Mack Center. The 8 p.m. game will be televised nationally on CBS Sports Network. Tickets may be purchased at UNLVtickets.com, by calling 702-739-FANS (3267) or by visiting the Thomas & Mack Center Box Office.