FRESNO, Calif. – UNLV still has no confirmed return for Tyrin Jones as it takes a three-game losing streak to Fresno State on Tuesday. The freshman’s shoulder injury has removed an efficient scorer and the Rebels’ leading shot blocker from a frontcourt already struggling to defend without fouling.
The game tips at 8 p.m. Pacific at Save Mart Center on FS1. UNLV is 10-11 overall and 5-5 in the Mountain West after losses to San Diego State, New Mexico and Reno. Coach Josh Pastner criticized the defense on the ball, rebounding and contested possessions after a week in which the Rebels were down 19 at halftime against New Mexico and opened 9-0 behind at Reno.
“It was insulting,” Pastner said Sunday. “That’s not who we are.”
Jones’ part in the rematch remains uncertain. The freshman aggravated a previously separated shoulder less than two minutes into the Jan. 27 New Mexico game, then missed the Reno trip. Pastner had called him day-to-day before Reno without confirming a Tuesday return. Emmanuel Stephen and Jacob Bannarbie would take on more of the work inside in his absence, with Hamilton also helping rebound.
The available frontcourt was already stretched at Reno. Stephen fouled out, Hamilton finished with four fouls and the Wolf Pack attempted 31 free throws to UNLV’s 11. Losing another big man to fouls would leave fewer defenders to handle Fresno State’s center, Wilson Jacques, who had 18 points and 11 rebounds in December.
Jones had 18 points and three blocks in the first meeting. His replacements enter with a different recent workload: Stephen started at Reno and fouled out after 16 minutes, while Bannarbie supplied seven points and five rebounds in 18 minutes before finishing with four fouls himself. Keeping either available late would be part of replacing Jones, alongside finding his scoring.
Bannarbie led UNLV with five assists in the first meeting, against one turnover. Stephen added three assists without a giveaway. Those available big men have already helped move the ball against Fresno State, even while their scoring roles differ from Jones’.
Fresno State enters at 10-11 overall and 4-6 in the conference after winning 79-62 at Air Force on Saturday. The Bulldogs have won three of their past five, and their record at Save Mart Center is 7-5. That is a more useful picture of Tuesday’s opponent than the preseason projection. UNLV is facing a team coming off a road win while trying to end its own losing streak.
Heidbreder leads Fresno State at 17.1 points per game, placing him fifth in the Mountain West in the school’s pregame notes. Collins averages 12.7 points and 4.9 assists, the latter second in the league. The pressure on UNLV’s guards therefore extends beyond keeping one scorer quiet. Collins can turn a defensive commitment into a pass, and Heidbreder can finish a possession that began with someone else’s drive.
Collins’ December line gives UNLV a specific passing problem to revisit. He had 15 points and seven assists, but also five turnovers. The Rebels sometimes took the ball away from him and still had to defend the possessions on which he found a teammate. His five made free throws also gave Fresno State points without requiring a made field goal.
Jacques averages 8.5 rebounds, fourth in the conference, with DeShawn Gory adding 5.9. Those numbers put another name beside the center on UNLV’s rebounding assignments. Having Stephen occupy Jacques will not finish a possession if Gory reaches the missed shot first. Hamilton and the guards have to account for the other Bulldogs arriving around the lane.
The Reno opening is one reason a lineup announcement alone would not settle the concern. Hamilton collected his second foul before UNLV scored, prompting Pastner to replace four players together. The reserves did provide offense, but the coach was already changing personnel while his team chased the game. Tuesday’s available big men need to get through those early assignments together.
Gibbs-Lawhorn scored 26 at Reno and is averaging 17.5 while carrying much of the work of organizing the offense. Hamilton can offer a second attack when another defender approaches Gibbs-Lawhorn, but the pass has to come while the defense is still moving. Holding it until late in the clock leaves Hamilton less time to drive or find the next teammate.
“We’re down 9 nothing again,” he said.
Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn scored 28, Kimani Hamilton had 20 and Jones added 18. UNLV’s late stops created opportunities to run, and Pastner credited second-half coverage changes after Fresno State had made transition 3-pointers.
Jacques recovered five of Fresno State’s 13 offensive rebounds in December, helping the Bulldogs finish ahead 31-30 overall on the glass. Jones’ three blocks did not remove that responsibility from the rest of the Rebels even when he was available. Tuesday’s center can challenge an attempt, but someone else still has to find Jacques when the ball comes back off the rim.
“Then the second half we changed some coverages … and we were much better,” Pastner said.
UNLV shot 16-for-26 after halftime in that first meeting and made 19 of 22 free throws for the game. The combination allowed it to finish the recovery without leaving many of its earned points unused. The first result is therefore no argument that Fresno State can be handled casually. It required efficient shooting, shared offense and a large change in what the Bulldogs were getting from outside.
David Douglas Jr. supplied a fourth scoring threat in December, making four 3-pointers for 12 points. Heidbreder added 17 and Collins 15 alongside Jacques’ double-double. UNLV’s second-half improvement therefore required attention beyond one guard and one center. Losing track of a secondary shooter would give Fresno State another way to punish the help directed toward Collins or the attention given to Jacques.
UNLV recorded 10 steals in that win. Generating another useful defensive possession would help reduce the burden on a half-court offense playing through uncertainty inside.
“We got our butt kicked in the 50-50 balls this past week,” Pastner said. “That’s gotta show.”
