Forward-thinking Rebels dominate Utes

A few weeks ago, sophomore Quintrell Thomas was UNLV's forgotten big man. He was buried on the bench as the third option in the so-called three-headed monster.

The 6-foot-8-inch forward was disgruntled because of it, too.

"Any competitive person would probably understand how I felt in that position," he said. "I never expected that. I transferred here to play."

Thomas was given a second chance to play, and he took out some of his frustrations Wednesday night by posting career highs of 15 points and 16 rebounds in the Rebels' 67-54 victory over Utah at the Thomas & Mack Center.

The Kansas transfer said he wanted to develop into the best big man in the Mountain West Conference. Finally, for one night, the picture he envisioned came into focus.

In 21 minutes, Thomas grabbed the most rebounds by a UNLV player in the past five seasons.

Freshman forward Carlos Lopez, Thomas' backup, added a season-high 14 points and nine rebounds as the Rebels (17-5, 5-3) stood up and dominated the taller Utes (10-12, 3-5).

"Quintrell and Carlos were big keys in the ballgame," UNLV coach Lon Kruger said. "Quintrell rebounded the ball like crazy. I think that's a little peek at what he can do in terms of rebounding.

"Carlos just keeps improving. He works very hard, and he has got a good feel for the game. With additional strength and just time, he's going to keep getting better."

Junior forward Chace Stanback made the Rebels' only two 3-pointers and finished with 11 points, six rebounds and three blocks.

UNLV had shooting difficulties from the field (24-for-65, 36.9 percent) and free-throw line (17-for-27) but overcame it by scoring 32 points in the paint and forcing 17 turnovers with pressure defense.

Thomas worked inside to score the first seven points for the Rebels, who shot 5-for-23 to open the game yet never trailed.

Stanback's 3-pointer from the corner put UNLV on top 16-12 with 8:09 remaining. The lead swelled to 13 points before Utah's Josh Watkins closed the gap to 33-24 by hitting a 3 just before the halftime buzzer.

Lopez scored six straight points as the Rebels raced ahead 44-26 with 14:48 remaining.

"Me and Carlos have been trying to put our stamp on this team for a little while now," said Thomas, who had 13 points and 12 rebounds in the first half.

Thomas and Lopez had success by attacking Utah's trees, 7-3 David Foster and 7-foot Jason Washburn. Foster, who had a big game in the Utes' victory over the Rebels last year at the Thomas & Mack, was ineffective with no points, eight rebounds and two blocks.

"Foster and the 7-footers, they're big, so we took this as a challenge," said Lopez, who played emotionally charged before he was pulled with 1:16 remaining, one rebound shy of a double-double that he wanted.

Will Clyburn had 17 points, 12 rebounds and six turnovers, and Josh Watkins scored 15 for the Utes.

Clyburn threw down an impressive two-handed slam over the Rebels' Anthony Marshall, but that was one of few highlights for a Utah team that was careless with the ball and shot a season-low 29.8 percent from the field.

UNLV was without its third big man, junior center Brice Massamba, who had the flu. Massamba was promoted to a starting role when Kruger benched Thomas on Dec. 30.

Beginning Dec. 1, Thomas went 14 straight games without scoring in double figures, playing seven minutes or fewer in five of the games.

"I probably made a mistake," Kruger said, when asked why Thomas disappeared from the rotation.

Thomas said he worked harder in practices, curtailed his foul problems and improved defensively to regain the trust of the coaches. He started and had 10 points and seven rebounds at Wyoming on Jan. 25.

"Every player goes through a little bit of adversity. It felt like it would never end," Thomas said. "But I'm glad that little streak is over."

Contact reporter Matt Youmans at myoumans@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2907.