Blog: Rebels notch 79-74 victory despite Josh Adams’ 31 points

By Taylor Bern

Published Saturday, Feb. 27, 2016 | 4 p.m.

Updated Saturday, Feb. 27, 2016 | 7:11 p.m.

UNLV 79, Wyoming 74

Game over

On Senior Night, fifth-year guard Jerome Seagears hit six 3-pointers and the Rebels held off visiting Wyoming to secure a 79-74 victory in the home finale. UNLV (17-13, 8-9) wraps up the regular season next Saturday at San Diego State.

UNLV freshman Derrick Jones Jr. led the Rebels with 23 points and four starters scored in double figures, including seniors Seagears and Ike Nwamu with 18 apiece. In his first game back since Feb. 6, freshman Stephen Zimmerman Jr. had 12 points and 11 rebounds.

Wyoming's Josh Adams scored 31 but fouled out with about a minute and a half left, effectively ending the Cowboys' chances of a comeback. For the game, UNLV shot 46 percent, and for stretches its defense was very good and even great, which was what kept them going despite Adams occasionally going off.

By the time UNLV plays at SDSU it could have sophomore Dwayne Morgan back in the rotation, too, so the Rebels are at least getting healthy at the right time and maybe putting themselves together for a run in the conference tournament.

Check lasvegassun.com later for a full report from the Rebels' victory.

UNLV freshman forward Stephen Zimmerman Jr. will return to the court tonight, which gives the team a much different look tonight in the regular-season home finale against Wyoming.

The Rebels (16-13, 7-9) take on the Cowboys (13-16, 6-10) at 5 p.m. in the Thomas & Mack Center on ESPN3.

Zimmerman has been out of action since suffering a sprained knee at Fresno State on Feb. 6, and he only returned to full practice on Thursday. He’ll be in the starting lineup tonight but as far as how many minutes he’ll play, that’s still up in the air.

The same goes for Wyoming guard Josh Adams, who has a high ankle sprain that forced him to miss a little bit of time against San Diego State on Wednesday. Adams will almost certainly play, though, and I doubt that it ends up keeping him on the bench very much, though it could keep the high-flyer a little more grounded.

Another injury we have to keep track of is UNLV senior guard Jerome Seagears, who hasn’t practiced in the last week after re-aggravating a bone contusion in his heel. Seagears will be honored before the game for Senior Night alongside Ike Nwamu and walk-ons Barry Cheaney and Alex Perez, and how much he plays after that will depend on how well his foot responds.

Health is always an important issue this time of year, and at least for the first time in a while the Rebels have some good news on that front.

Prediction: If Wyoming heats up beyond the arc the Pokes could secure the upset, but I like the Rebels tonight. UNLV 70, Wyoming 65

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