UNLV vs. UC Irvine Prediction, Odds, Key Player to Watch for NIT 1st Round

The UC Irvine Anteaters were a win away from the NCAA Tournament, but they lost to Hawaii in the Big West title game, leading to an NIT berth.

So, the Anteaters now play at 11:00 p.m. EST on Tuesday night against the UNLV Runnin’ Rebels of the Mountain West Conference.

UNLV’s season came to an end with a loss to the Utah State Aggies, who ended up winning the Mountain West Championship to advance to the NCAA Tournament. UNLV is just one game over .500 in the 2025-26 season, and oddsmakers aren’t exactly buying it in this matchup.

UC Irvine is actually favored by 1.5 points on Tuesday night, a sign of respect for the team that was No. 1 in the Big West going into the conference tournament.

Here’s a look at the odds, a player to watch and my prediction for this NIT battle on March 17.

UNLV vs. UC Irvine Odds, Spread and Total

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook

Spread

UNLV +1.5 (-108)
UC Irvine -1.5 (-112)

Moneyline

UNLV: +105
UC Irvine: -125

Total

151.5 (Over -112/Under -108)

UNLV vs. UC Irvine How to Watch

Date: Tuesday, March 17
Time: 11:00 p.m. EST
Venue: Bren Events Center
How to Watch (TV): ESPNU
UNLV record: 17-16
UC Irvine record: 23-11

UNLV vs. UC Irvine Key Player to Watch

Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn, Guard, UNLV

This season, junior guard Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn is averaging 20.7 points per game (No. 22 in the country), 3.1 rebounds and 2.5 assists for the Runnin’ Rebels.

UNLV only has three players averaging double figures, and it’s pretty clear that Gibbs-Lawhorn is the driving force of this offense. He’s shooting 41.9 percent from beyond the arc, and he’s had games with 42 (against Nevada) and 32 (against San Diego State) in his last five contests.

Gibbs-Lawhorn is looking to avenge his Mountain West tournament showing where he averaged just 16.0 points per game across two games.

UNLV vs. UC Irvine Prediction and Pick

These teams are No. 104 (UC Irvine) and No. 107 (UNLV) in KenPom’s latest rankings, so we should get a rather close game on Tuesday night.

The Anteaters win games with their defense, ranking 26th in the country in adjusted defensive efficiency, sixth in opponent effective field goal percentage and No. 1 in opponent 2-point percentage. They’re also 20th in opponent free-throw rate.

Meanwhile, the Runnin’ Rebels are an offense-first team, ranking 84th in adjusted offensive efficiency and 172nd in adjusted defensive efficiency.

While there could be some easy buckets for the Anteaters in this game, UC Irvine ranks outside the top-200 in KenPom’s adjusted offensive efficiency and it’s just 359th in 3-point rate. So, there usually plenty of low-scoring games with UC Irvine in action.

In fact, the UNDER is 20-12 in the Anteaters’ games, though it’s 12-20 in UNLV’s matchups.

Still, with UC Irvine set as a slight favorite, I think the UNDER is the play. The Anteaters aren’t going to compete as well in a high-scoring affair, and they’ve gone UNDER 151.5 points in seven of their last 10 games overall.

Pick: UNDER 151.5 (-108 at DraftKings)

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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