Rebels hit .500 as losing streak reaches 3 following latest loss

UNLV’s losing streak is now three after another lopsided loss as the program slips to .500 on the year with non-conference nearing a close.

In their first true road game of the season, the Runnin’ Rebels were walloped, 83-65, by the Creighton Bluejays Saturday, Dec. 7 from Omaha. Earlier this week, unbanked Creighton took down the No. 1 team in the country, Kansas on its home floor.

Last year, UNLV upset a then No. 8 Creighton team from the Thomas & Mack Center. With five all-time meetings recorded, the Rebels have taken three.

Present-day UNLV has lost three straight games and are now 4-4 on the year with two of those losses coming by 18 or more. That mark includes an 0-3 mark against teams from Power conferences.

The Rebels will look to correct things upon returning home to the Thomas & Mack Center in about a week. Next Saturday, the program will host the Pacific Tigers with tip-off slated for 7:30 p.m.

Though relatively healthy, junior forward Bear Cherry had his first half severely limited due to foul trouble. He played just five minutes in the first half after picking up two quick fouls.

Soon after, Creighton went on a 9-0 run to begin pulling away. At one point, the team connected on six straight field goals before going into halftime up by 12 points.

Coming out of halftime, the Bluejays went on a 10-0 run which really put the pressure on the visiting Rebels. The lead would eventually grow to 23.

By the time Cherry found a second half rhythm, the game was out of reach. He’d only attempt four shots in the second half with one falling on his way to four points and four rebounds in 16 minutes.

As a team, UNLV was outrebounded by 13.

Sophomore Dedan Thomas Jr. had a fast start with 13 points in the first half before being cooled off in the second 20-minute session. He’d finish with 18 points on 7-of-18 from the floor.

Last season, he tallied 16 points, nine assists and six rebounds as a freshman playing against a top-10 ranked team.

Thomas recorded the team’s first assist of the night but it didn’t come until nearly three and a half minutes into the second half. In the first half, his Rebels were held without an assist on 11 made field goals.

By the final buzzer, the team compiled just seven assists versus 27 converted field goals.

Senior guard Jailen Bedford led the team with 20 points off-the-bench. Since being removed from the starting lineup, he’s averaging 17.5 points per outing.

Bedford also added three steals with shared in the game-high with teammate Brooklyn Hicks. As a collective, UNLV forced 16 turnovers which turned into 18 points on the other end.

Transfer guard Julian Rishwain was the final player in Rebel Red to reach double-figures with 10 points. He had a perfect start to the tune of 3-for-3 with a made three in the first half.

The real trouble for UNLV came at the rim as the team missed 13 of its 20 layup attempts in the loss. On the greater scale, the team was outshot, 63% to 42%.