PALO ALTO, Calif. — Kimani Hamilton had already missed two free throws Sunday when Stanford sent him to the line with 3.8 seconds remaining and the score tied. He missed another, then made the one UNLV needed.
Ebuka Okorie received Stanford’s final pass near the top of the key and got off a runner before the horn, but the shot came off the rim and UNLV left Maples Pavilion with a 75-74 win.
The victory snapped a three-game losing streak and improved UNLV to 4-5. Stanford fell to 7-2 with its second home loss of the season.
Hamilton scored UNLV’s final three points and finished with 15 points and four steals. Emmanuel Stephen led the Rebels with 18 points and 10 rebounds in his season debut after missing the first eight games with an injury.
Stephen played 30 minutes and made eight of 13 shots while giving UNLV its first extended look at the 7-foot center in Josh Pastner’s offense. Jacob Bannarbie and Ladji Dembele also missed the game with injuries, making Stephen’s return more important against Stanford’s frontcourt.
Stanford still controlled the offensive glass. The Cardinal outrebounded UNLV 46-34, grabbed 20 offensive rebounds and scored 26 second-chance points. Oskar Giltay finished with 14 rebounds, including nine on the offensive end.
UNLV never solved that problem. It won because it scored inside on the other end and forced Stanford into enough mistakes to take back some of the possessions it lost on the glass.
The Rebels shot 48.3% and finished with a 48-28 advantage in paint scoring. Both teams shot 30% from 3-point range, but Stanford attempted 30 shots from deep compared with 10 for UNLV.
“We knew that for us to win, we were going to have to win in the combat zone,” Pastner said.
Stephen gave UNLV a reliable option there almost immediately. He scored 10 points before halftime, grabbed four offensive rebounds for the game and completed the first road double-double by a Mountain West player against an ACC opponent since Anthony Bennett did it for UNLV at North Carolina in December 2012.
Stanford took its largest lead after a Ryan Agarwal 3-pointer and an Okorie free throw made it 31-22 with 6:25 remaining in the first half. UNLV closed the half on a 16-8 run, with Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn making a late 3-pointer before Stephen dunked just ahead of the buzzer.
That sent the Rebels into halftime trailing 39-38 despite Stanford’s 10 offensive rebounds and 14 second-chance points.
Neither team led by more than five during the second half. Stanford continued extending possessions but shot 35.5% after halftime, and Hamilton’s layup gave UNLV a 63-60 lead with 6:14 remaining.
Stanford scored the next six points and eventually moved ahead 70-66 on two Jeremy Dent-Smith free throws with 3 minutes left. Tyrin Jones made three of four free throws across UNLV’s next two possessions to cut the deficit to one.
Stanford then committed turnovers on three consecutive possessions. UNLV gave the ball back after the first, but Hamilton stole Okorie’s pass with 1:25 left. Gibbs-Lawhorn split two free throws to tie the game before Stephen stole the ball from Chisom Okpara on Stanford’s next trip.
Gibbs-Lawhorn made two more free throws after Stephen’s steal, giving UNLV a 72-70 lead with 1:05 remaining.
Okorie entered the game averaging 21.4 points, tied for 12th nationally, and Stanford continued putting the ball in his hands despite his struggles against UNLV. He finished with 18 points but made four of 16 shots and committed six turnovers.
Inside the final minute, Okorie missed a layup, collected his own rebound and scored through a foul. The three-point play put Stanford back in front 73-72 and added another second-chance basket to a game filled with them.
Pastner called timeout, and Hamilton backed his defender into the paint before making a turnaround jumper with 30 seconds left. Okorie drew a foul at the other end and split two free throws with 17.7 seconds remaining to tie the game at 74.
Hamilton attacked the basket on UNLV’s final possession and drew the foul that sent him to the line with 3.8 seconds remaining. UNLV was 15-for-26 from the line before his two attempts. Hamilton missed the first and made the second.
Okorie’s final runner did not fall.
Gibbs-Lawhorn scored 15 points on 5-for-9 shooting, and Jones added 11 off the bench. UNLV forced 16 turnovers and improved to 2-0 in true road games after also winning at Memphis.
The Rebels still finished 16-for-27 at the free-throw line and allowed Stanford to collect nearly half of its misses. They will return to Southern Nevada to play Tennessee State on Dec. 13 at Lee’s Family Forum with Stephen available after his first game of the season.