Rebels come alive late to hand third straight loss to Cowgirls

“We have an eight-point lead with three and a half to go in the game and unfortunately just let them claw back into it,” Cowgirls coach Heather Ezell said. “We could have knocked down shots when we needed them. We had some great looks, but just didn’t get one to go.

“...It’s definitely tough to take and tough to swallow.”

The Cowgirls’ offense opened up three separate five-point leads during the first quarter, but they were unable to push the advantage any further. However, their defense played lights-out in the opening frame and held one of the top offenses in the conference to just 5-of-18 shooting.

The teams started out rough offensively, with tight defense on both ends causing issues. Both UW and UNLV made five shots in the second quarter and shot under 41% in the half.

After going up by four points with less than a minute left, UNLV’s Desi-Rae Young made a difficult contested shot to get the Rebels back within two points heading into the break.

Both teams exchanged baskets out of the break, but UW managed to maintain its lead thanks to clutch shots from Emily Mellema and Allyson Fertig.

Just before the halfway mark, Young was called for an intentional foul on Fertig, which helped UW extend its lead to two possessions. After the Rebels cut it back to one, a 5-0 run helped UW open a seven point lead.

Tess Barnes extended that lead to eight points with less than a minute to go in the third quarter. But UNLV struck once again, cutting the lead to six entering the fourth quarter.

UW maintained its eight point lead through the opening minutes of the fourth quarter, but were outscored 10-2 over a three-minute stretch to see its lead cut to just two once again.

UW’s offense came alive and managed to stretch its advantage back to eight thanks to a 6-0 run.

With just under three minutes to go, UW held a 53-45 lead and looked poised to close out the game. But UNLV showed why it is the two-time reigning Mountain West champion over the waning moments of regulation.

The Rebels closed out regulation with an 8-0 run to tie the game 53-53. UW had one final chance to win, but missed an open look from about seven feet out with less than three seconds left.

“They’re a good team,” said senior McKinley Dickerson, who finished with 14 points on the night. “We kept not trading baskets and they kept scoring and we didn’t, so that’s where we kind of lost it.”

UNLV pushed its run to 13 consecutive points to take a 58-53 lead in overtime. Mellema and Dickerson managed to cut the lead back to two points on two separate occasions, but that was as close as UW came. UW managed to cut the lead to three points and after a defensive stand, Mellema’s last-second heave from about 35 feet out hit the side of the rim and stayed out.

“They finished some plays (in that stretch) and we fouled too many times that put them to the free throw line,” Ezell said. “They went to a zone, but it wasn’t anything we hadn’t seen. Unfortunately, you look at the fourth quarter and overtime, we go 1-for-13 from the 3-point line.”

Despite the loss stinging more than normal, UW has high amounts of confidence moving forward. The path to an MW championship run through the Rebels in Las Vegas, and the Cowgirls know they have what it takes to compete with them.

“We’re hungry for that win,” Dickerson said. “It’s been two very close losses, and we’re hungry for it.

“...By the time March rolls around, we are going to be kind of terrifying.”

The Cowgirls will be back on the court Saturday, hosting New Mexico at the Arena-Auditorium.

{div class=”OutlineElement Ltr SCXW201923059 BCX0”}{p class=”Paragraph SCXW201923059 BCX0” lang=”EN-US” xml:lang=”EN-US”}UNLV 63, WYOMING 60{/div}

{div class=”OutlineElement Ltr SCXW201923059 BCX0”}{p class=”Paragraph SCXW201923059 BCX0” lang=”EN-US” xml:lang=”EN-US”}UNLV...... 12 12 11 18 10 — 63{/div}

{div class=”OutlineElement Ltr SCXW201923059 BCX0”}{p class=”Paragraph SCXW201923059 BCX0” lang=”EN-US” xml:lang=”EN-US”}Wyoming........ 15 11 14 12 7 — 60{/div}

{div class=”OutlineElement Ltr SCXW201923059 BCX0”}{p class=”Paragraph SCXW201923059 BCX0” lang=”EN-US” xml:lang=”EN-US”}UNLV: Scoggin 2-5 0-0 5, Jackson 3-11 3-3 9, Durazo-Frescas 1-5 0-0 3, Young 6-12 3-6 15, Lott 1-2 0-0 2, James 1-3 2-2 4, Kimpson 6-9 1-3 16, Obiazor 3-10 1-49. Totals: 23-62 13-18 63.{/div}

{div class=”OutlineElement Ltr SCXW201923059 BCX0”}{p class=”Paragraph SCXW201923059 BCX0” lang=”EN-US” xml:lang=”EN-US”}Wyoming: Mellema 5-14 2-3 14, Barnes 3-11 0-1 7, Pedersen 4-10 0-0 8, Ustowska 1-3 0-0 3, Fertig 6-14 0-0 12, Ollilainen 1-3 0-0 2, Dickerson 5-11 1-2 14. Totals:25-68 3-6 60.{/div}

{div class=”OutlineElement Ltr SCXW201923059 BCX0”}{p class=”Paragraph SCXW201923059 BCX0” lang=”EN-US” xml:lang=”EN-US”}3-pointers: UNLV 4 (Durazo Frescas 1,Kimpson 1, Obiazor 1, Scoggin 1); UW 7 (Mellema 2, Dickerson 3, Ollilainen 1, Ustowska 1, Barnes 1). Rebounds: UNLV 48 (Brown 19); UW 37 (Fertig 12). Assists: UNLV 4 (Brown 2); UW 18 (barnes 5). Turnovers: UNLV 14 (Young 5); UW 12 (Barnes 2, Fertig 2). Steals: UNLV 6 (Young 3), UW 4 (Four with 1). Blocks: UNLV 7 (Brown 3); UW 2 (Barnes 1, Mellema 1). Team fouls: UNLV 13, UW 18.{/div}