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March 19, 2024

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Blog: Rebels secure nice victory away from home, 75-61 against South Dakota

UNLV vs. South Dakota basketball

Michael G. Brown / Michael G. Brown Photography

Rashad Vaughn (1) of UNLV looks for an opening as South Dakota’s Casey Kasperbauer applies pressure Saturday, Dec. 13, 2014, in Sioux Falls, S.D.

Updated Saturday, Dec. 13, 2014 | 7:05 p.m.

UNLV vs. South Dakota

Jordan Cornish of UNLV gets squeezed between Eric Robertson (41) and Casey Kasperbauer (14) on Saturday, Dec. 13, 2014, at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D. Launch slideshow »

UNLV 75, South Dakota 61

Game over

Pat McCaw swarmed everywhere around the court, Rashad Vaughn led the team with 18 points and Chris Wood weathered first-half foul trouble to finish strong as the Rebels secured a solid 75-61 victory tonight against South Dakota at the Sanford Pentagon.

UNLV led by 11 at halftime and the margin didn't get into single digits until the final couple of minutes. By then it was too late for the Coyotes to mount enough of a comeback as they shot 38.2 percent in the second half and hit only 2-of-17 behind the three-point line for the game.

Wood finished with his sixth double-double, totaling 11 points and 10 rebounds. McCaw had 12 points, four rebounds and four steals. Jelan Kendrick also scored 13 points. The Rebels return to the Mack on Wednesday against Portland.

Check lasvegassun.com later tonight for a full report from tonight's victory.

As the National Finals Rodeo wraps up at the Thomas & Mack Center, the Rebels are back on the road playing their first game in the Central Time Zone since 2011.

UNLV (5-2) is a 4.5-point favorite against South Dakota (3-7) in a neutral-site game less than an hour from the Coyotes’ campus. The arena, the Sanford Pentagon, is small (3,250 capacity) but it’s a really nice venue that opened a little more than a year ago. The game tips at 5 p.m. Las Vegas time and will stream on ESPN3.

UNLV should have all of its players available, as freshman Rashad Vaughn (back) and senior Jelan Kendrick (back, groin) will be back in the starting lineup after missing the Dec. 5 victory against St. Katherine.

While I don’t expect a huge South Dakota contingent, this game is neutral the same way that UNLV playing at the Orleans Arena is neutral. Although it’s a quick bus ride for South Dakota, on Friday the Rebels took the lone flight from Las Vegas to Sioux Falls and arrived late after sitting on the tarmac at McCarran International Airport for about an hour.

The keys to the game from UNLV’s perspective are defending the three-point line and maintaining the game plan — inside-out offensive movement, pushing in transition — even if shots aren’t falling. I covered that in yesterday’s preview, so today I wanted to look at coach Dave Rice’s history as a road favorite, even though this isn’t technically a road game.

Last year the Rebels went 4-0 both straight up and against the spread as road favorites, which salvaged what was a really ugly mark through two years. As a favorite in true road games through Rice’s first two seasons, Rice went 3-12 ATS and 8-7 straight up.

Performing up to expectations has been a constant battle for Rice, and today will be another test. This is a tough road trip to throw at a team, though it’s one that Rice hopes will prepare the Rebels for the upcoming trips in Mountain West play.

If the Rebels are dialed in and making shots consistently, they could easily run away with this thing. If not, South Dakota is capable of making things uncomfortable and capitalizing on UNLV mistakes, unforced or otherwise.

Bern’s prediction: I’m inclined to wait and see with this UNLV team, so even though I think it’s very possible for the Rebels to win by 17, I’m calling it close. UNLV 65, South Dakota 60

Season: 2-4 ATS, 2-4 O/U

Taylor Bern can be reached at 948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Taylor on Twitter at twitter.com/taylorbern.

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