UNLV WOMEN’S BASKETBALL NEWS: Freshman Desi-Rae Young Named MW Player Of The Week
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UNLV freshman center Desi-Rae Young was named the Mountain West Women’s Basketball Player of the Week Monday by the conference office after leading the Lady Rebels to a road sweep at San Diego State. That increased the Lady Rebels’ road win streak to seven games, which is tied for the seventh-longest in the nation. This is the first weekly honor of Young’s career, and she is the third Lady Rebel to earn MW weekly honors this season after Delaynie Byrne was named on Dec. 27 and Nia Johnson on Feb. 2, and this is the first time the Lady Rebels have had three Player of the Week awards since Katie Powell was named three times in the 2017-18 season.
Young is the first Lady Rebel freshman to be named MW Player of the Week since Réjane Vérin picked up two awards in the 2012-13 season, and becomes just the second Las Vegas native to receive the league’s weekly honor while wearing the Scarlet and Gray, joining former standout Sequoia Holmes (2006-07 and 2007-08).
Young averaged a double-double for the week with 16 points and 10.5 rebounds in the road sweep. In UNLV’s 73-71 victory on Feb. 16, the Lady Rebels entered the fourth quarter down 57-49 when Young scored the first four points of the fourth quarter, and after a UNLV trey, added two more points to cap off a 9-0 spurt to give UNLV the lead back. The Lady Rebels would not trail again in the game. She tied her career-high with 20 points in the victory, while picking up her fourth double-double of the year with 12 rebounds.
In the first game, an 80-65 victory on Feb. 15, Young scored 12 points and posted nine rebounds in just 22 minutes of action. She went 4-of-6 from the floor and 4-of-6 at the line in the 15-point game one victory. Young currently paces all MW freshmen in both points (12.0) and rebounds (6.5) per game.
UNLV closes out the regular season this week with two more road games, at Fresno State on Feb. 25 and 27.