Rebels knock off No. 19 Illinois in Chicago

“Whenever the opportunity arises, then I have to deliver,” he said.

Thomas finally got his chance, for a change, and he changed the game. The junior forward came off the bench and delivered 13 points and seven rebounds to help the Rebels knock off No. 19 Illinois 64-48 at the United Center.

Mike Moser had 17 points and 11 rebounds to lead a more inspired effort by UNLV (11-2).

The victory was a bit of redemption for the Rebels, who stuck the Fighting Illini (10-1) with their first loss and proved they could manhandle a Big Ten Conference opponent.

“We wanted to come in here and make a statement and show everybody that we actually are really good,” Thomas said. “It was a little revenge.”

Illinois embarrassed UNLV in a 73-62 NCAA Tournament decision in March. The Rebels also were humbled 62-51 on Dec. 10 at Wisconsin. Each game was more lopsided than the final score.

“I was asked all week about the NCAA Tournament game,” first-year UNLV coach Dave Rice said. “I didn’t feel like that was a big part of the motivation. I think the bigger thing was the fact that our guys were really frustrated with our effort last week.”

This time, Rice said, “We were ready to play.”

Thomas never got off the bench against the Badgers — the first DNP of his Rebels career — but this time he was ready when Rice called his number midway through the first half.

After hitting his first two jumpers, Thomas converted a three-point play and powered a closing 14-2 run that sent UNLV into halftime with a 33-22 advantage.

The Rebels led 50-34 after Thomas dropped in a short jumper with 9:45 remaining. D.J. Richardson connected on two 3-pointers as the Illini answered with a 12-4 spurt to get within eight with 4:24 to go.

But a dunk by Thomas and Chace Stanback’s two free throws restored the Rebels’ double-digit lead and silenced the crowd of 15,144.

Thomas said UNLV, which had struggled since stunning then-No. 1 North Carolina 90-80 on Nov. 26, needed another quality win for its NCAA Tournament resume.

“You don’t want it to look like, ‘Oh, you’ve got one good win.’ We can’t keep losing to the good teams,” Thomas said. “You get the feeling around the country that everybody wants to love us. But we’ve got to give them a reason to. Now we have won a couple good games, and we need to keep it rolling.”

In the teams’ meeting in March, Illinois’ guards shredded the Rebels’ full-court traps and ran a layup drill while rolling to a 22-point halftime lead. Rice altered the strategy in the rematch, and UNLV focused on double-teaming 7-foot-1-inch Meyers Leonard.

“We felt like Leonard is as good a post player as there is in the country,” Rice said. “We didn’t want him to get going early.”

After Brice Massamba and Carlos Lopez took turns on Leonard, Rice sent in the 6-8, 245-pound Thomas to help push Leonard off the block. Leonard was limited to seven points, and the Illini guards failed to cash in from the perimeter as Brandon Paul and Sam Maniscalco shot a combined 3-for-22.

“I definitely could sense their frustration, and they got stagnant,” Moser said.

Richardson, a Findlay Prep product, hit 5 of 8 3-pointers and scored 19 points to keep Illinois close during a miserable offensive outing for his team. The Illini shot 16-for-63 (25.4 percent) from the field.

“We knew it would be a defensive struggle,” Rice said. “We were fortunate they did miss some easy shots.”

But three of the Rebels’ snipers — Stanback and guards Oscar Bellfield and Anthony Marshall — were misfiring all day, shooting a combined 2-for-15. Stanback, who was scoring a team-high 14.3 points per game, was held to two free throws.

With key contributions from Massamba and Lopez, UNLV outscored the Illini 36-16 in the paint and 12-0 on the fast break, and also had 10 steals and nine blocked shots.

“Our defensive pressure was really top notch, and I think it really showed when they started missing shots and we got out in transition,” said Justin Hawkins, who helped the Rebels to a 26-3 advantage in points off the bench.

Thomas hit 5 of 6 field goals, all three free throws and added two steals and two blocks in 19 minutes. He scored in double figures for the first time since the Nov. 11 season opener.

“He did just about everything for us for a long stretch of time,” Moser said. “He (has) struggled, but we always know he has it in him. He definitely was cooking.”

Thomas lobbied for more playing time with his actions, not words.

“We’ve been doing well this season, so I can’t really complain,” he said. “But it is good to finally get in and be able to play.”

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