Rebels hold off Lobos, 63-62

At the split second UNLV's season seemed to be hanging in the balance, New Mexico freshman Kendall Williams held his right hand in the air.

"I thought the shot was going down," Williams said.

But the ball rimmed out, much to the relief of the Rebels' Chace Stanback, who watched in stunned disbelief.

"My heart was pounding. I thought we lost it for a second," Stanback said. "He almost made it. It was kind of scary. My heart dropped."

Williams stole an inbounds pass and was fouled on the missed shot with 1.1 seconds to play. He stepped to the line for two shots to help the Lobos force overtime, and after sinking the first free throw, his second attempt spun off the back of the rim.

"I thought the free throw was going down," Williams said, "but sometimes it just doesn't bounce your way."

Center Brice Massamba clutched the rebound, and UNLV held on by a heartbeat to defeat New Mexico 63-62 on Saturday in an error-filled but entertaining Mountain West Conference game at the Thomas & Mack Center.

"It was a dramatic end," said Tre'Von Willis, whose steal and two free throws put the Rebels ahead by one with 27 seconds remaining.

"That was a must-win. Whoever lost that game was going to have four conference losses."

UNLV (15-5, 3-3) escaped with an NCAA Tournament pulse after narrowly avoiding a late-game collapse and a second straight home setback.

After trying to recount the details of a frantic final minute, Rebels coach Lon Kruger admitted most of it was a blur.

"I don't know if any of this is accurate, but it's what I recall," Kruger said, smiling. "It was crazy. It's kind of a quirky way to finish it."

Stanback scored 20 points, 16 in the first half, and Oscar Bellfield added 13 points for the Rebels.

But it was Willis who made two of the biggest plays. The senior guard, who missed the previous two games with a sore right knee, said he did not decide to play until about 15 minutes before tipoff.

The Lobos (13-7, 1-4) took a 61-58 lead on Tony Snell's 3-pointer from the corner with 1:52 remaining.

After Massamba blew an open layup, Willis got a steal and led a fast break. He dropped the ball off to Stanback, who hit a 15-point jumper to close the gap to 61-60 with 1:11 left.

Each team had a turnover before Willis stole a pass by Snell at midcourt, and Willis was intentionally fouled by New Mexico's Dairese Gary on a breakaway.

"They threw it inside as I was trying to deny Gary, and that's when it kind of fell in my lap. From there I was trying to go off to the races," Willis said. "It was a good call."

Willis' free throws put the Rebels up 62-61. They retained possession, and Bellfield was fouled with 18 seconds to play. He made the second free throw.

Williams drove the lane and sailed a pass over teammate Phillip McDonald into the Lobos' bench with 2.6 seconds left. It appeared the outcome was sealed.

But it was just about to get crazy. UNLV senior Derrick Jasper threw away the inbounds pass, Williams dribbled to 12 feet and put up the potential tying shot as he was fouled by Jasper.

"I thought Derrick was going to throw it deep, so I didn't feel like we needed a timeout there. But in retrospect, I should have taken one," Kruger said. "The young guy, who played a great game, missed a free throw, which is always tough."

Williams was 7-for-7 from the line before missing the final attempt. He finished with 11 points, as five Lobos scored in double figures. Gary had 15 points and Drew Gordon added 10 points, on five dunks, and 13 rebounds.

But Gordon was outplayed at times by Rebels freshman forward Carlos Lopez, who had nine points and three steals. After Lopez drove around Gordon and converted a three-point play at the six-minute mark, New Mexico coach Steve Alford called Gordon to the bench and yelled, "That freshman just kicked your (butt.)"

The Lobos had 20 turnovers, including three down the stretch.

"We had the game," Williams said. "Both teams were trying to give away the game, and we tried harder."

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