RUNNIN’ REBELS AT PRINCETON FOR FIRST-ROUND NIT GAME WEDNESDAY
UNLV men’s basketball in postseason for first time in 11 years; 5 p.m. PT game to be shown on ESPN+
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The UNLV men’s basketball team, which has won 10 of its last 13 games, will appear in the postseason for the first time in 11 years and open play in the 2024 National Invitation Tournament at No. 2 seed Princeton on Wednesday, March 20. The 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT game at Jadwin Gymnasium in Princeton, New Jersey, will be shown on ESPN+.
LAST TIME OUT: UNLV (19-12), which finished fourth in the Mountain West this season with a 12-6 league mark, suffered a heartbreaking loss to San Diego State in overtime, 74-71, in the conference tournament’s quarterfinals on Thursday at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas. Freshman guard Dedan Thomas Jr. scored a career-high 29 points and added five assists, while fifth-year senior Keylan Boone added 17 points, eight rebounds and a career-high-tying four blocks. Fifth-year senior Justin Webster contributed 14 points. Both teams led the contest by 10 points (UNLV in the first half and SDSU in the second) during the wild affair, but the battle on the glass was the difference with the Aztecs leading in rebounds 51-30.
RUNNIN’ REBEL LEADERS: Five UNLV players are averaging double figures in scoring this season: Dedan Thomas Jr. (14.1 ppg), who earned Mountain West Co-Freshman of the Year and second-team All-MW honors, Keylan Boone (12.4 ppg), who was named third team All-MW, fifth-year senior Kalib Boone (11.1 ppg), who was honorable mention All-MW, fifth-year senior Luis Rodriguez (10.7 ppg), who was named to the All-MW Defensive Team, and fifth-year senior Jalen Hill (10.7 ppg). Rodriguez leads the team in rebounds (6.6 rpg, 9th in MW) and steals (1.6 spg, 2nd in MW), Thomas Jr. is the assists leader (5.2 apg, 6th in MW, 42nd in nation), and Kalib Boone leads in blocks (1.6 bpg, 2nd in MW). Hill missed six games with a wrist injury and returned at San Diego State on Jan. 6, but left late in the first half in that game after suffering a knee injury, which an MRI later revealed to be a season-ending ACL tear.
ABOUT THE ROSTER: This season’s UNLV squad features seven returners from last year’s team along with seven newcomers. The newcomers are made up of three Division I transfers, a junior college transfer and three freshmen. UNLV has 10 upperclassmen, including five fifth-year seniors. A total of four players on the roster are playing in their hometown of Las Vegas. The Runnin’ Rebels returned two starters in Luis Rodriguez and Justin Webster, who averaged 10.7 and 8.2 points per game last season, respectively. Rodriguez led last season’s team in rebounding (5.7 rpg).
ABOUT THE OPPONENT: Princeton (24-4) won the regular-season Ivy League title this season with a 12-2 league mark, but was upset in the conference tournament’s semifinals Saturday against Brown, 90-81. Freshman guard Dalen Davis scored all 21 of his team-high points in that contest in the second half as the Tigers came back from a second-half deficit of 22 points to cut it to just three with under a minute to go. Matt Allocco added 20 points and Ivy Player of the Year Caden Pierce had 19 points and 12 rebounds. The Tigers entered the Ivy Tournament having won nine straight games. Three Princeton players are averaging double figures in scoring: Xaivian Lee (17.3 ppg), Pierce (16.4 ppg) and Allocco (12.9 ppg). Pierce is the team’s leading rebounder (9.4 rpg), while Lee leads in assists (3.6 apg). Pierce is also the team’s leader in field-goal percentage at 54.2 with Allocco next at 50.8. The Tigers are 12-0 at home this season. Princeton averages 77.1 ppg as a team and ranks 27th in the country in scoring defense at 66.0 ppg. The Tigers went 23-9 and tied for first in the Ivy League at 10-4 last season. After winning the Ivy Tournament title, they advanced to the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16 as a No. 15 seed with upset wins over Arizona and Missouri. Led by head coach Mitch Henderson, Princeton has just five upperclassmen on its 15-man roster.
BROADCAST INFO: Wednesday’s game will be shown on ESPN+ with Derek Jones and Noah Savage calling the action. Jon Sandler and former Runnin’ Rebel Curtis Terry will handle the UNLV radio call, which may be heard live on ESPN Radio 1100 in Las Vegas and worldwide on SiriusXM 382. All streaming links and live stats are available at UNLVRebels.com and through the UNLV Rebels App.