LAS VEGAS (AP) — Dedan Thomas Jr. made a layup and a 12-foot fadeaway jumper to cap a closing seven-point run by UNLV, which defeated No. 22 Utah State 65-62 on Wednesday night.
Utah State's Mason Falslev missed a 3-pointer in the final seconds, snapping the Aggies' six-game winning streak.
Jalen Hill led the Rebels (10-7, 4-2 Mountain West) with 15 points, Julian Rishwain finished with 13 and Jailen Bedford had 10.
Thomas added eight points, about half of his season average. But his four points at the end were the most important as UNLV closed with a 12-2 surge.
Tucker Anderson led Utah State (16-2, 6-1) with 19 points, and Ian Martinez added 15.
Though the Aggies had been on a roll, they also won a series of close calls. All six victories during their streak were decided by single digits.
Utah State appeared poised to pull off another such win, going on a 15-3 run to go up 60-53 with 5:25 left. But the Rebels refused to go away, setting the stage for the final winning spurt.
The Aggies were hoping to come close to matching their best Mountain West start. They won their first nine conference games four years ago, but will have to settle for their second-best beginning.
Takeaways
Utah State: The Aggies were held 21 points below the 83.2-point scoring average they took into the game.
UNLV: The Rebels dominated inside, outscoring Utah State 36-20 in the paint.
Key moment
Rishwain made a 3-pointer with 2:23 left to set up the game-ending run, turning a four-point deficit into a one-point game.
Key stat
The Rebels struggled from the 3-point line in the first half, making 2 of 16. They were 4 of 9 over the final 20 minutes.
Up next
Utah State hosts Nevada on Wednesday, and UNLV plays at San Diego State on Saturday.
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