Blog: Doolin leads UNLV to thrilling 75-73 overtime victory vs. Portland

By Taylor Bern

Published Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2014 | 6:30 p.m.

Updated Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2014 | 10:03 p.m.

UNLV 75, Portland 73 Overtime

Game over

Cody Doolin saved UNLV, twice, and his final drive was the decisive one in a 75-73 overtime victory against Portland that saved UNLV from an ugly loss ahead of a brutal schedule that starts Saturday against No. 13 Utah.

Doolin got the Rebels (7-2) into overtime with a great drive and dump off to Dwayne Morgan, who tied the game at 62-62 with a layup at the buzzer. Doolin then canned a 3 in overtime and took charge, finishing with 15 points on 6-of-8 shooting and three assists.

Rashad Vaughn led all scorers with 25 points and added seven rebounds. Chris Wood scored 17 with six rebounds and three assists.

If UNLV played as hard for the entire game as they did in the final three minutes of regulation plus overtime, this wouldn't have been all that close. Portland played very well and performed just as balanced as their numbers indicated coming into the game, but when Doolin, Vaughn and Pat McCaw were focused and dialed in the Rebels were very good.

The problem was those instances were far too rare. Check lasvegassun.com later tonight for a full report from the Rebels' victory.

Two years and two weeks ago, UNLV went to Portland for its first road game of the season. It feels like a lifetime ago, in part because no Rebel who played that day is still on the roster.

Four graduated, one is in the NBA and three are playing for other universities. Meanwhile, the Pilots have been steadily building. They won 11 games that season, 15 last year and they’re off to a 7-2 start with help from leading scorer Kevin Bailey (13.1 points per game), who was just a role player the last time these teams met. Bailey might miss his third straight game with a foot injury, but even if he does the Pilots have other weapons.

The home-and-home was originally set up as a way to get then-Rebel Mike Moser a game in his hometown. Moser missed the game with a hip strain and five days later came the elbow injury at Cal, but that’s neither here nor there.

The point is this is the return game from a meeting the Rebels (6-2) were lucky to win the first time around and they’re certainly going to be tested tonight. Tip-off at the Thomas & Mack Center is at 7:30 p.m. with the game streaming on the Mountain West Network and Campus Insiders.

Portland’s strength is on the inside, where Thomas van der Mars (6-foot-11, 240 pounds from the Netherlands) and Volodymyr Gerun (6-11, 235 from the Ukraine) make their living.

Gerun and van der Mars combine for 21.3 points and 14.3 rebounds per game. All together, four Pilots average double figures in scoring, with freshman guard D’Marques Tyson just on the outside at 9.4 ppg.

The Pilots are good in areas the Rebels are not — offensive rebounding, free-throw shooting — and they’re capable from the outside, which means UNLV can’t just load up the interior and ignore shooters. But inside is clearly where the intriguing battles will be taking place.

Can Goodluck Okonoboh avoid jumping at every pump fake to stand his ground in the post? Can Christian Wood stand his ground at all against guys much larger than him?

Foul trouble hasn’t been as big of an issue for those two as I thought it would be, but Saturday’s win at South Dakota shows you what the team looks like when it does come up. Playing Pat McCaw at the 4 and Jordan Cornish at the 5 is OK against the Coyotes, but it wouldn’t work against most teams, including the Pilots.

Bern’s prediction: I think this game is a legit concern for the Rebels, but I can’t get over the fact that Portland went to overtime against San Jose State. UNLV 68, Portland 59

Season: 3-4 ATS, 2-4 O/U

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