LOOKING IN ON: UNLV BASKETBALL

Friday, Jan. 5, 2007 | 7:13 a.m.

Who: UNLV at Air Force

When: 12:30 p.m. Saturday

On TV: Versus, Cox cable channel 67

On radio: KBAD 920-AM

UNLV junior swingman Curtis Terry glanced at the stat sheet for the Rebels' double-overtime thriller against Utah and saw some interesting figures.

UNLV gave out 26 assists and turned it over only six times in its 97-94 victory over the Utes at the Thomas & Mack Center.

"That is ridiculous," Terry said. "That's what they like to do."

Not the Utes. Terry was speaking about the Air Force Falcons. At No. 20, Air Force is the lone team in the Mountain West Conference that is ranked. It also won its league opener Wednesday at Colorado State.

The Rebels (14-2) play the Falcons on Saturday at Clune Arena in Colorado Springs, Colo. A victory over arguably the best team in the conference, in its own building, would justify the hype building around a Rebels team that has won its last 10 games.

"Air Force always has low turnovers and high assists," Terry said. "So far this season, we've done that. We're taking care of the ball. We're not in such a hurry to score, but we get the looks we want. And everyone is sharing the ball, not caring who gets the credit."

Air Force entered the week averaging 17.6 assists and 10.6 turnovers, for a gaudy ratio of 1.67. The Rebels were next at 1.41 (15.7 assists and 11.1 turnovers), and they enhanced those numbers against the Utes.

"We know what to expect from them," Terry said. "They'll run their offense, get what they want, not force anything. Very deliberate. We'll have to be disciplined with our defense and rebounding, try to limit their opportunities on back doors and open 3s.

"As long as we can do that, and knock down some open shots, we should have a pretty good chance."

Tough foe

Air Force beat UNLV twice last season, 52-50 at the Thomas & Mack and 68-55 in Colorado. Terry hit three of his five attempts beyond the 3-point arc at Clune Arena, where he finished with 13 points.

He said the Falcons will get 3-point shots and back-door layups; it will just be a matter of limiting them.

"It's just whether or not they're open (shots) or quality," he said. "We will have to be patient on offense, too, because they play that funky matchup zone. Sometimes it's tough. But if you take your time, you can beat it."

Adaptable

Since the Rebels lost, 89-75, at Arizona in November, UNLV coach Lon Kruger has altered some of his strategies. Terry said the team has generally tried to play tighter at both ends of the court.

He said the Wildcats capitalized on the Rebels' desire to run at a "very fast pace" and spread the defense out.

"After the Arizona game, we compressed a little bit, got a little tighter," Terry said. "We're not so extended. Defense is our thing right now. As long as we do that, we'll always have a chance."

UNLV entered the Utah game shooting 44.7 percent, eighth in the nine-team Mountain West. The Rebels went 36-for-76 (47.4 percent) against the Utes.

"We haven't shot the ball very well on the season," Terry said. "That'll come. Once we get our shots going and our defense stays up there, we'll have a chance."

Nabbed

Tom Babcock, the head of security at the Thomas & Mack, said the student section picked out the individual who threw an empty 12-ounce beer bottle that struck security official George Horton on his forehead at the end of regulation.

Another official said the students were threatened with heavy security measures if they didn't cooperate.

With two-tenths of a second remaining, Utah trailed 79-77 when forward Stephen Weigh was fouled while attempting a 3-point shot. Before Weigh attempted his three free throws (he made the final two, sending the game into overtime), the crowd roared in disapproval.

What appeared to be a cup of ice was tossed onto the other end of the court. One official noticed, but didn't investigate. Moments later, the bottle struck Horton.

Babcock said Horton needed seven stitches to fix the wound. "But he was fine," Babcock said. "He said his mother hit him harder than that."