What do experts think of the Lady Rebels’ NCAA Tournament chances?

The UNLV’s women’s basketball team appeared in line for a higher seed this year after reaching its third straight NCAA Tournament.

The Lady Rebels were a No. 13 seed in 2022 and lost 72-67 to No. 4 Arizona in the first round. They were a No. 11 seed last year when they lost 71-59 to No. 6 Michigan.

UNLV, ranked No. 20 by The Associated Press on Monday, did see an improvement when it heard its name called on Selection Sunday this time. But not by much.

The Lady Rebels (30-2) earned a No. 10 seed and a first-round matchup with No. 7 Creighton (25-5) at 4 p.m. Saturday at UCLA’s Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles.

The winner will advance to face either No. 2 UCLA or No. 15 California Baptist.

“We didn’t expect anything worse, anything better (about our seeding). We’re ready to play,” senior center Desi-Rae Young said.

UNLV hasn’t been shy about its goal this year.

It wants a win in the tournament, the program’s first since 1991. That was also the last time the Lady Rebels finished a season ranked by The Associated Press.

“We talk about it in the locker room all the time, that if we get in the (NCAA Tournament), it’s going to end differently than the last times,” junior forward Alyssa Brown said. “We’re hungry for a win in the NCAA Tournament. We’re ready to put Vegas on the map and we think about it constantly.”

Some national experts believe UNLV can make it happen.

ESPN women’s bracketologist Charlie Creme had the Lady Rebels as a No. 8 or No. 9 seed most of the season. He wrote in his tournament predictions that UNLV is one of the two best mid-major teams in the field.

Creme believes the Lady Rebels will defeat Creighton and then lose to UCLA in the second round.

“The Lady Rebels are probably underseeded at No. 10 and could beat a lower seed to advance out of the first round,” Creme wrote.

The Athletic’s Michael Waterloo, in his breakdown of the bracket, was impressed with UNLV’s defensive rebounding and ability to take care of the ball. The Lady Rebels average 10.5 turnovers per game, the second-fewest in the country.

One thing Waterloo was skeptical of was UNLV’s strength of schedule. The Lady Rebels were the only Mountain West team to make the NCAA Tournament. The conference’s second-best team by the NCAA’s NET rankings was Colorado State at No. 98.

UNLV did defeat NCAA Tournament teams Arizona, a No. 12 seed, and Oklahoma, a No. 5 seed, in nonconference play.

“It’s hard to fully buy into UNLV given the lack of true competition it faced this year,” Waterloo wrote. “Round 2 is the ceiling.”

Waterloo didn’t predict winners for each round but said Creighton “has first weekend upset written all over it.”

“Creighton was able to beat up on inferior competition, but when it faced a solid opponent — UConn, Marquette and even Green Bay — it lost,” Waterloo wrote.

The Washington Post’s Adam Vachon said UNLV could be one of three double-digit seeds “who could bust NCAA women’s tournament brackets.”

Vachon gave the Lady Rebels an 18.2 percent chance to reach the Sweet 16. He said UNLV has an edge with its ability to limit opponent’s offensive opportunities.

Vachon also believes the Lady Rebels’ experience will pay dividends in this tournament.

“An experienced 30-2 team that doesn’t beat itself is a good candidate to give first-round opponent Creighton and potential round-of-32 opponent UCLA a run for their money,” Vachon wrote.

Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.